EXPERIMENT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does experiment mean? 

• EXPERIMENT (noun)
  The noun EXPERIMENT has 3 senses:

1. the act of conducting a controlled test or investigation

2. the testing of an idea

3. a venture at something new or different

  Familiarity information: EXPERIMENT used as a noun is uncommon.

• EXPERIMENT (verb)
  The verb EXPERIMENT has 2 senses:

1. to conduct a test or investigation

2. try something new, as in order to gain experience

  Familiarity information: EXPERIMENT used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• EXPERIMENT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The act of conducting a controlled test or investigation

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

experiment; experimentation

Hypernyms ("experiment" is a kind of...):

research project; scientific research (research into questions posed by scientific theories and hypotheses)

Meronyms (parts of "experiment"):

control; control condition (a standard against which other conditions can be compared in a scientific experiment)

condition; experimental condition (the procedure that is varied in order to estimate a variable's effect by comparison with a control condition)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "experiment"):

testing (the act of subjecting to experimental test in order to determine how well something works)

trial and error (experimenting until a solution is found)

Michelson-Morley experiment (a celebrated experiment conducted by Albert Michelson and Edward Morley; their failure to detect any influence of the earth's motion on the velocity of light was the starting point for Einstein's theory of relativity)

control experiment (an experiment designed to control for variables affecting the results of another experiment)

Derivation:

experiment (to conduct a test or investigation)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The testing of an idea

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

experiment; experimentation

Context example:

not all experimentation is done in laboratories

Hypernyms ("experiment" is a kind of...):

enquiry; inquiry; research (a search for knowledge)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "experiment"):

pilot experiment (a preliminary experiment whose outcome can lead to a more extensive experiment)

test; trial; trial run; tryout (trying something to find out about it)

Derivation:

experiment (to conduct a test or investigation)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A venture at something new or different

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Context example:

as an experiment he decided to grow a beard

Hypernyms ("experiment" is a kind of...):

venture (any venturesome undertaking especially one with an uncertain outcome)

• EXPERIMENT (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they experiment    ... he / she / it experiments   
Past simple: experimented   
Past participle: experimented   
-ing form: experimenting   

Sense 1

Meaning:

To conduct a test or investigation

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Context example:

We are experimenting with the new drug in order to fight this disease

Hypernyms (to "experiment" is one way to...):

investigate; look into (investigate scientifically)

Verb group:

experiment; try out (try something new, as in order to gain experience)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

experiment (the act of conducting a controlled test or investigation)

experiment (the testing of an idea)

experimentation (the act of conducting a controlled test or investigation)

experimentation (the testing of an idea)

experimenter (a research worker who conducts experiments)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Try something new, as in order to gain experience

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Synonyms:

experiment; try out

Context example:

The composer experimented with a new style

Verb group:

experiment (to conduct a test or investigation)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s

Derivation:

experimentation (the testing of an idea)

 Context examples 

The Community Trial is a planned experiment that involves administering an exposure within a community in order to elucidate its impact on the incidence of a specific disease in that community.

(Community Trial, NCI Thesaurus)

An experiment or clinical trial that includes a comparison (control) group.

(Controlled study, NCI Dictionary)

I saw him try both experiments upon a dog, but could not discern any effect from the former.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

Women, experiment with new makeup colors and textures.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

A detailed plan of a scientific or medical experiment, treatment, or procedure.

(Clinical Study Protocol, NCI Dictionary)

In vitro experiments conducted with intact, living cells.

(Cellular Assay, NCI Thesaurus)

“They clung to the inside and stuck together. When we did the same experiment with sand and volcanic ash using Earth-like conditions, all of it came out. Nothing stuck.”

('Electric Sands' Cover Titan, VOA News)

The inside of the container often has a coating (as silvering) on the inside to reduce heat transfer, and is used especially for storing liquified gases or for experiments at low temperatures.

(Dewar, NCI Thesaurus)

An oral anticoagulant that interferes with the metabolism of vitamin K. It is also used in biochemical experiments as an inhibitor of reductases.

(Dicumarol, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

The date on which an experiment begins.

(Experiment Start Date, NCI Thesaurus)