heuristic

²heu·ris·tic

noun \hyu̇-ˈris-tik\

Definition of HEURISTIC

1

: the study or practice of heuristic (see ¹heuristic) procedure

2

: heuristic (see ¹heuristic) argument

3

: a heuristic (see ¹heuristic) method or procedure

Examples of HEURISTIC

1. “Cult” is best understood not as a descriptor, but as a command, like a law officer's “Halt!” Its purpose is to stop and contain. A more useful heuristic would be to identify precisely the most disturbing practices, beliefs, or incidents in the world of a “cult” … —Robert A. Orsi, Commonweal6 Oct. 2000
2. Search engines … use heuristics to determine the way in which to order—and thereby prioritize—pages. —Soumen Chakrabarti et al., Scientific American, June 1999

Origin of HEURISTIC

(see ¹heuristic)

First Known Use: 1860

Other Computer-Related Terms

adware, flash, kludge, phishing, recursive, router