empiric

em·pir·ic

(em-pir'ik),

1. A member of a school of Graeco-Roman physicians (late BCE to early CE) who placed their confidence in and based their practice purely on experience, avoiding all speculation, theory, or abstract reasoning; they were little concerned with causes or with correlating symptoms to gain a true understanding of a disease, even holding basic knowledge, physiology, pathology, and anatomy in low esteem and of no value in practice.

2. Modern: testing a hypothesis by careful observation, hence rationally based on experience.

3. Founded on practical experience, rather than on reasoning alone, but not established scientifically in contrast to rational1.

4. Relating to an empiric1.

[see empirical]

empiric

[empir′ik]

Etymology: Gk, empeirikos, experimental

pertaining to a method of treating disease based on observations and experience without an understanding of the cause or mechanism of the disorder or the way the therapeutic agent or procedure affects improvement or cure. The empiric treatment of a new disease may be based on observations and experience gained in the management of analogous disorders. empirical, adj.

em·pir·ic

(em-pir'ik)

1. Founded on practical experience, rather than on reasoning alone, but not proved scientifically, in contrast to rational (1)

2. Based on careful observational testing of a hypothesis; rational.

em·pir·ic

(em-pir'ik)

Founded on practical experience, rather than on reasoning alone, but not established scientifically, in contrast to rational.