the act of reasoning through to the practical outcome of a hypothesis when physical proof is unavailable or unattainable
Origin of thought experiment
calque of German gedankenexperimentthought experiment
thought experimentWebster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Thought experiment." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment.
APA Style
Thought experiment. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment
thought experiment
noun
An imagined sequence of events that is used to illustrate or investigate the consequences of a given action or condition, especially in philosophy and theoretical physics.
Origin of thought experiment
Translation of German Gedankenexperiment Gedanke thought Experiment experimentTHE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Thought experiment." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment.
APA Style
Thought experiment. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment
Noun
(plural thought experiments)
- (physics, philosophy) An attempt to solve a problem using the power of human imagination.
Origin
A calque of German Gedankenexperiment.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Thought experiment." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment.
APA Style
Thought experiment. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment
thought experiment - Medical Definition
n.
An imagined sequence of events that is used to illustrate or investigate the consequences of a given action or condition, especially in philosophy and theoretical physics.
The American Heritage Dictionary of Medicine © 2018 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"Thought experiment." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment.
APA Style
Thought experiment. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/thought-experiment
