empiricism

noun

em·​pir·​i·​cism im-ˈpir-ə-ˌsi-zəm 

em-

1

a

: a former school of medical practice founded on experience without the aid of science or theory

b

: quackery, charlatanry

2

a

: the practice of relying on observation and experiment especially in the natural sciences

b

: a tenet arrived at empirically

3

: a theory that all knowledge originates in experience

empiricist

im-ˈpir-ə-sist 

em-

noun

Examples of empiricism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Romantic literature isn’t all love stories; the cohort rejected the cold reason and empiricism of the Enlightenment in favor of the irrational, the supernatural, the emotional, and the deeply subjective. —Judy Berman, TIME, 1 July 2024

But the Gulf rulers have also evinced a hard-headed, Machiavellian empiricism that is amoral rather than immoral. —Robert D. Kaplan, Foreign Affairs, 8 Aug. 2023

That's why empiricism was invented in the first place, and why it's been so spectacularly successful over the last few centuries. —Sean Carroll, Discover Magazine, 2 Apr. 2012

In short, empiricism dominated philosophy and psychology until the second half of the 20th century, when nativist-friendly thinkers such as Noam Chomsky swung the pendulum back toward Plato. —Jacob Beck, Scientific American, 14 Feb. 2023

Word History

Etymology

empiric + -ism

First Known Use

1658, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

empiricism

noun

em·​pir·​i·​cism im-ˈpir-ə-ˌsiz-əm 

em-

1

: the practice of relying on observation and experiment in the natural sciences

2

: a theory that knowledge begins with experience

empiricist

-səst 

noun or adjective

Medical Definition

empiricism

noun

em·​pir·​i·​cism im-ˈpir-ə-ˌsiz-əm, em- 

1

a

: a former school of medical practice based on the teachings of the empirics

b

: quackery

2

: the practice of relying on observation and experiment especially in the natural sciences