hypothetically

adverb

hy·​po·​thet·​i·​cal·​ly ˌhī-pə-ˈthe-ti-k(ə-)lē 

: by making an assumption for the sake of discussion or argument : in a hypothetical way

speaking hypothetically

In this lucid report … he uses genetic differences, maps, computer simulations and an analysis of linguistic changes in the world's languages to hypothetically reconstruct the mass migrations of people across continents since modern humans first appeared.

—Genevieve Stuttaford

We asked ourselves hypothetically: If the chairmen of the boards of these major tobacco companies walked in here today and said, "Okay, we're ready to do a deal," what did we want?

—Lewis H. Lapham

—used to suggest what is theoretically possible

Hypothetically, you could use a computer to synthesize a large number of harmonics, add them back together, and reproduce a sound similar to that of the bowed violin string.

—Dragan Huterer

Examples of hypothetically in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Dobson asked Fortune hypothetically, on the sidelines of the conference. —Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 26 Nov. 2025

Therefore, no amount of information could even hypothetically disprove it for true believers. —Calum Lister Matheson, The Conversation, 14 Nov. 2025

The transfer window alignment hypothetically allows MLS to be more transactional with the rest of the world each summer. —Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 13 Nov. 2025

Duffy even hinted Friday at hypothetically cutting capacity up to 20% of air traffic if the shutdown drags on. —Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 11 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1593, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hypothetically

• apologetically
• photosynthetically
• phylogenetically
• aesthetically
• esthetically
• genetically
• kinetically
• phonetically
• poetically
• prophetically
• synthetically
• alphabetically