epistemological

adjective

epis·​te·​mo·​log·​i·​cal i-ˌpi-stə-mə-ˈlä-ji-kəl 

: of, relating to, or based on epistemology : relating to the study of the nature, origin, and limits of human knowledge

the epistemological problem

Critical realists could learn a little epistemological humility from philosophical pragmatism, the understanding … that, beyond the scale of immediate, non-controversial truth-statements, knowledge is indeed highly partial and fallible …

—James D. Proctor

Although epistemological and power differences between scientists and lay audiences remain, they can be offset through various kinds of collaboration.

—Dawn J. Wright et al.

How do we know that our holy books are free from error? Because the books themselves say so. Epistemological black holes of this sort are fast draining the light from our world.

—Sam Harris

epistemologically

i-ˌpi-stə-mə-ˈlä-ji-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

… only a handful of epistemologically privileged comrades and movie stars know the truth, and they are forever muzzled.

—New Republic

Examples of epistemological in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

India’s current public health crisis is compounded by an epistemological one: the government’s data cannot be trusted. —Mandakini Gahlot, Foreign Affairs, 28 Apr. 2021

These phenomena are in some ways the epistemological counterpoint to UAPs. —Michelle Orange, Harper's Magazine, 3 Nov. 2023

Like point one of our two-part ABCT, the doctrine is both epistemological (a form of knowledge) and ethical (practical wisdom for everyday human interaction), warranting rational objectivity and moral reciprocity. —M. D. Aeschliman, National Review, 25 Dec. 2023

Scientific investigations, like detective stories, take place within an epistemological system, a way of knowing. —Siddhartha Mukherjee, The New Yorker, 11 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

epistemology + -ical

First Known Use

1854, in the meaning defined above