What is the difference between hypothesis and guess?
hypothesis | guess | Synonyms |
(sciences) Used loosely, a tentative conjecture explaining an observation, phenomenon or scientific problem that can be tested by further observation, investigation and/or experimentation. As a scientific term of art, see the attached quotation. Compare to theory, and quotation given there.
* 2005 , Ronald H. Pine, http://www.csicop.org/specialarticles/show/intelligent_design_or_no_model_creationism, 15 October 2005:
(general) An assumption taken to be true for the purpose of argument or investigation.
(grammar) The antecedent of a conditional statement.
To reach a partly (or totally) unqualified conclusion.
To solve by a correct conjecture; to conjecture rightly.
(chiefly, US) to suppose (introducing a proposition of uncertain plausibility).
* Shakespeare
* Alexander Pope
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(obsolete) To hit upon or reproduce by memory.
* Shakespeare
A prediction about the outcome of something, typically made without factual evidence or support.
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Guess is a synonym of hypothesis.
As nouns the difference between hypothesis and guess
is that hypothesis is used loosely, a tentative conjecture explaining an observation, phenomenon or scientific problem that can be tested by further observation, investigation and/or experimentation. As a scientific term of art, see the attached quotation. Compare to theory, and quotation given there while guess is a prediction about the outcome of something, typically made without factual evidence or support.As a verb guess is
to reach a partly (or totally) unqualified conclusion.hypothesis
English
(wikipedia hypothesis)Noun
(hypotheses)- Far too many of us have been taught in school that a scientist, in the course of trying to figure something out, will first come up with a "hypothesis" (a guess or surmise—not necessarily even an "educated" guess). ... [But t]he word "hypothesis" should be used, in science, exclusively for a reasoned, sensible, knowledge-informed explanation for why some phenomenon exists or occurs. An hypothesis can be as yet untested; can have already been tested; may have been falsified; may have not yet been falsified, although tested; or may have been tested in a myriad of ways countless times without being falsified; and it may come to be universally accepted by the scientific community. An understanding of the word "hypothesis," as used in science, requires a grasp of the principles underlying Occam's Razor and Karl Popper's thought in regard to "falsifiability"—including the notion that any respectable scientific hypothesis must, in principle, be "capable of" being proven wrong (if it should, in fact, just happen to be wrong), but none can ever be proved to be true. One aspect of a proper understanding of the word "hypothesis," as used in science, is that only a vanishingly small percentage of hypotheses could ever potentially become a theory.
Synonyms
* supposition * theory * thesis * educated guess * guess * See alsoDerived terms
* hypothesize * hypothetic * hypothetical * hypotheticallyguess
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) . More at (l).Verb
- He who guesses the riddle shall have the ring.
- That album is quite hard to find, but I guess you could try ordering it online.
- Not all together; better far, I guess , / That we do make our entrance several ways.
- But in known images of life I guess / The labour greater.
- Tell me their words, as near as thou canst guess them.
Synonyms
* hypothesize * take a stab * speculateDerived terms
* foreguess * guess what * guessable * guesser * guessing game * guesstimate * guesswork * keep someone guessing * no prize for guessing * out-guess * second-guess * you'll never guessEtymology 2
From (etyl) gesse. Cognate with (etyl) .Noun
(es)- If you don't know the answer, take a guess .