experimental

adjective

ik-ˌsper-ə-ˈmen-tᵊl How to pronounce experimental (audio)
Definition of experimentalnext
1
as in developmental
made or done as an experiment an experimental procedure for patients suffering from leukemia

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in empirical
based on observation or experience asserted that experimental knowledge is vastly superior to idle speculation and theorizing

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of experimental This weekend, Ciani performs her first ever concert in Scotland, at Glasgow’s Sonica Festival, a longstanding art and experimental music festival where Ciani will perform among a lineup of other experimental artists from around the world. — Katie Bain, Billboard, 2 Oct. 2026 This creative and experimental spirit is on full display in the book, which invites readers into the homes of Robin and Stephen Alesch of Roman and Williams, plus Kelly Wearstler, Ken Fulk, Mark Grattan, Andre Mellone, Nicole Hollis, and more. — Anna Grace Lee, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2026 These initial satellites transformed experimental infrared observations into an operational program that continuously monitored the globe for missile launches. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 2 Oct. 2026 New Atlas recently covered an experimental smart ring developed at UC San Diego that goes beyond optical sensing entirely, analysing sweat for biomarkers including glucose and ketones. — New Atlas, 2 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for experimental
Recent Examples of Synonyms for experimental
  1. developmental
  2. empirical
  3. investigative
  4. observational
  5. preliminary
  6. objective
  7. pilot
Adjective
  • Could recreational or developmental programs provide a pathway toward competitive teams?
    — Irma Davarashvili, Forbes.com, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Development continues Blackbeard will undergo additional developmental flight testing at Patuxent River.
    — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of developmental
Adjective
  • Both Fontaines were scouts well ahead of the deep empirical and objective analysis of baseball data — sabermetrics is the catchall term — that some believe has made scouts obsolete.
    — Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Others, like Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares, think the empirical methods this would require are extremely unlikely to work, and place the chance that superintelligence kills us all very high.
    — Geoffrey Irving, Time, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of empirical
Adjective
  • Those new details were included in the lengthy confidential investigative report compiled by Cornell and reviewed by ABC News.
    — Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Many of the 175 findings in the report will not come as a surprise to those who have followed the flurry of lawsuits, investigative news reports and city and county after-action reviews.
    — Evan Bush, NBC news, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of investigative
Adjective
  • Eleanor envisioned an observational film in the vein of Frederick Wiseman, and the doc is narrated by actress Diane Lane, a longtime Coppola family collaborator, who reads Eleanor’s contemporaneous diary entries from twenty years ago.
    — Marlow Stern, Variety, 30 Sep. 2026
  • My research focuses on finding links between fiber and different diseases in observational data and figuring out how to test them in a clinical trial.
    — Jean Liew, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of observational
Adjective
  • Heading into this week, investors will be watching for minutes from the Fed's September meeting on Wednesday and the University of Michigan's preliminary October consumer sentiment reading, due Friday.
    — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The decision on whether to enable Northwestern’s plans came down to Evanston’s City Council, which in October 2023 tied at a preliminary vote.
    — Shun Graves, Chicago Tribune, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of preliminary
Adjective
  • Both Fontaines were scouts well ahead of the deep empirical and objective analysis of baseball data — sabermetrics is the catchall term — that some believe has made scouts obsolete.
    — Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
  • By any objective measure, the Pan America is a capable, comfortable, raucous-sounding, brute-faced, mile-killer that attracts only the very finest heathens.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of objective
Adjective
  • Everyone has a co-pilot license, a few motivated teams have built something useful, and the data foundation is partly there.
    — Shweta Gummidipudi, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Kreiz, who announced his exit from Mattel earlier Wednesday, was already talking with Ellison about a high-level exec post at ParaBros – but the co-pilot gig didn’t always seem to be in the cards.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of pilot

Browse Nearby Words

experiment
experimental
experimentation
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Cite this Entry

“Experimental.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/experimental. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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