# experimental

Pronunciation: US say "ik-sper-uh-MEN-tuhl" /ɪkspɛɹəˈmɛntəl/; UK

## Adjective

1. Relating to or founded on experiment.
   - Simple: Based on doing real tests to learn or prove something.
   - _Strong experimental evidence supports the existence of gravitational waves._
   - _She chose experimental physics over theory because she loved working with her hands._
2. Serving as an experiment or as a means of experimenting; done as a trial of something new.
   - Simple: Done as a test or trial of something new and not yet proven.
   - _The airline is running an experimental boarding program to cut delays._
   - _His experimental approach to filmmaking divided critics but won him a devoted following._
3. Used in or subjected to an experiment; serving as the material or subject on which an experiment is performed.
   - Simple: Being the thing or group that gets tested in an experiment.
   - _The experimental group received the vaccine, while the control group received a placebo._
   - _Each experimental plot was planted with the modified seed and watered on the same schedule._
4. Based on what is known through direct experience or observation rather than on theory or reasoning alone.
   - Simple: Based on a person's own real experience of something.
   - _The old preacher spoke of an experimental faith, rooted in what he himself had felt and lived._
   - _Her understanding of poverty was experimental, formed through years of hardship rather than study._

## Noun

5. A person, animal, or other subject on which an experiment is performed.
   - Simple: A person, animal, or thing that is tested in an experiment.
   - _Each experimental was housed separately to prevent cross-contamination._
   - _Researchers compared outcomes between the experimentals and the controls after six weeks._

## Origin

Formed from "experiment" combined with the suffix "-al".

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/experimental (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).