theory

theory
I
(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)
n. speculation, surmise, conjecture; contemplation; principle, philosophy, doctrine; hypothesis; guess, idea, plan. See supposition.
II
(Roget's IV) n.
1. [Principles]
Syn. law, principles, postulates, data, conditions, basis, plan, provision, ideas, formularization, systemization, system, codification, code, argument, plea, scheme, foundation, method, approach, outlook, doctrine, dogma, rationale, cosmology, Weltanschauung (German), philosophy; see also law 4 .
2. [Something to be proved]
Syn. hypothesis, assumption, conjecture, speculation, opinion; see also hypothesis , opinion 1 .
Syn.- theory , in scientific or technical use, refers to a general principle or set of principles, based on considerable evidence, formulated to explain the operation of certain phenomena [ the theory of evolution ] , though it is often loosely used to mean a mere conjecture, guess, or hypothesis; hypothesis refers to an explanation that is tentatively inferred, often as a basis for further experimentation, but that is not fully supported by evidence [ the nebular hypothesis] ; law implies an exact formulation of the principle operating in a sequence of events in nature, observed to occur with unvarying uniformity under the same conditions [ the law of the conservation of energy ]
III
(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) n.
hypothesis, speculation, conjecture, supposition, guess, presumption, assumption, formulation, idea, thesis, surmise, postulate, hunch. ''A hunch with a college edu-cation.''—J.A. Carter.
IV
(Roget's Thesaurus II) noun 1. Abstract reasoning: conjecture, speculation. See BELIEF, THOUGHTS. 2. A belief used as the basis for action: hypothesis. See BELIEF, THOUGHTS. 3. Something taken to be true without proof: assumption, postulate, postu-lation, premise, presupposition, supposition, thesis. See REASON.

English dictionary for students. 2013.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую
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