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heuristic

The definition of heuristic refers to techniques, activities or lessons that allow someone to discover something for himself or by finding solutions through experiments or loosely defined rules.

(adjective)

A process whereby you are asked questions to discover answers on your own and learn more about yourself on your own is an example of a process that would be described as heuristic.

Heuristics are defined as ways of finding out the answer to a question.

(noun)

An example of heuristics are common sense and trial-and-error.

See heuristic in Webster's New World College Dictionary

adjective

helping to discover or learn; specif., designating a method of education or of computer programming in which the pupil or machine proceeds along empirical lines, using rules of thumb, to find solutions or answers

Origin: < Ger heuristisch < Gr heuriskein, to invent, discover: see eureka

Related Forms:

heuristically adverb

See heuristic in American Heritage Dictionary 4

adjective

Of or relating to a usually speculative formulation serving as a guide in the investigation or solution of a problem: “The historian discovers the past by the judicious use of such a heuristic device as the ‘ideal type’” (Karl J. Weintraub).
Of or constituting an educational method in which learning takes place through discoveries that result from investigations made by the student.
Computer Science Relating to or using a problem-solving technique in which the most appropriate solution of several found by alternative methods is selected at successive stages of a program for use in the next step of the program.

noun