Theory
WordNet
noun
(1) A tentative theory about the natural world; a concept that is not yet verified but that if true would explain certain facts or phenomena
"A scientific hypothesis that survives experimental testing becomes a scientific theory"
"He proposed a fresh theory of alkalis that later was accepted in chemical practices"
(2) A belief that can guide behavior
"The architect has a theory that more is less"
"They killed him on the theory that dead men tell no tales"
(3) A well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena
"Theories can incorporate facts and laws and tested hypotheses"
"True in fact and theory"
WiktionaryText
Etymology
English since 1613, from < < < < < + .
Noun
- An unproven conjecture.
- I have a theory about who broke into the school last night, but I have no proof to back it up.
- An expectation of what should happen, barring unforeseen circumstances.
- So we’ll be there in three hours? — That’s the theory.
- A coherent statement or set of statements that attempts to explain observed phenomena.
- There is now a well-developed theory of electrical charge.
- A logical structure that enables one to deduce the possible results of every experiment that falls within its purview.
- The theory of relativity was proposed by Einstein.
- A field of study attempting to exhaustively describe a particular class of constructs.
- Knot theory classifies the mappings of a circle into 3-space.
- A set of axioms together with all statements derivable from them.
- A theory is consistent if it has a model.