THEORETICAL

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does theoretical mean? 

• THEORETICAL (adjective)
  The adjective THEORETICAL has 2 senses:

1. concerned primarily with theories or hypotheses rather than practical considerations

2. concerned with theories rather than their practical applications

  Familiarity information: THEORETICAL used as an adjective is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• THEORETICAL (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Concerned primarily with theories or hypotheses rather than practical considerations

Synonyms:

theoretic; theoretical

Context example:

theoretical science

Similar:

abstractive (of an abstracting nature or having the power of abstracting)

a priori (based on hypothesis or theory rather than experiment)

conjectural; divinatory; hypothetic; hypothetical; supposed; suppositional; suppositious; supposititious (based primarily on surmise rather than adequate evidence)

notional; speculative (not based on fact or investigation)

metaphysical (highly abstract and overly theoretical)

theory-based (based in theory rather than experiment)

Antonym:

empirical (derived from experiment and observation rather than theory)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Concerned with theories rather than their practical applications

Context example:

theoretical physics

Similar:

abstract (dealing with a subject in the abstract without practical purpose or intention)

academic (hypothetical or theoretical and not expected to produce an immediate or practical result)

pure (concerned with theory and data rather than practice; opposed to applied)

Antonym:

applied (concerned with concrete problems or data rather than with fundamental principles)

 Context examples 

Pillitteri’s team determined WASP-18 is between 500 million and 2 billion years old, based on theoretical models and other data.

(NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory Finds Planet That Makes Star Act Deceptively Old, NASA)

There is a long history of theoretical work about how genomes might change in small populations.

(Genetic ‘Mutational Meltdown’ Doomed Woolly Mammoths, VOA)

Systems designed to elucidate facts about complex biological phenomena, usually in a less complex or theoretical test environment.

(Biological Model, NCI Thesaurus)

Theoretical studies predict at least 100 million of these small black holes should exist in the Milky Way, however only about 60 have been found.

(Astronomers Find New Evidence for Long-theorized Mid-sized Black Holes, VOA News)

Actual observation and treatment of disease in patients (including experimental treatment) as distinct from theoretical or experimental work.

(Clinical Treatment, NCI Thesaurus)

My theoretical and his practical knowledge together could not have failed.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

To understand more about the mechanisms that create the saddle shapes, the researchers created a theoretical model that could predict the behavior of the origami.

(Saddle-shaped origami enables new microelectronic applications, National Science Foundation)

The theoretical basis for this nursing practice incorporates physiological and psychosocial concepts of health as they affect cardiac/vascular wellness.

(Cardiac/Vascular Nursing, NCI Thesaurus)

Theoretical astronomy tells us when a black hole absorbs matter — planets, debris, anything that comes too close — a brief flash of light is visible.

(Astronomers Piece Together First Image of Black Hole, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Scientists are still striving for a solid theoretical understanding of how gas being pulled into black holes creates outflowing jets.

(The Giant Galaxy Around the Giant Black Hole, NASA)