methodology

noun meth·od·ol·o·gy \ ˌme-thə-ˈdä-lə-jē \

|Updated on: 10 Jun 2018

Examples: methodology in a Sentence

Editor's Note: methodology and Science

Definition of methodology

plural methodologies

1 : a body of methods, rules, and postulates employed by a discipline : a particular procedure or set of procedures

demonstrating library research methodology

the issue is massive revision of teaching methodology
—Bob Samples

2 : the analysis of the principles or procedures of inquiry in a particular field

See methodology defined for English-language learners

Examples of methodology in a Sentence

He blamed the failure of their research on poor methodology.
for solving crossword puzzles my usual methodology is to begin by filling in all of the answers I'm reasonably sure of

Recent Examples of methodology from the Web

Instead, each county uses its own methodology to collect and report visitor estimates.

— ron hurtibise, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Tourists keep coming in record numbers, say South Florida, state tourism officials," 6 June 2018
Their methodology reflects the difficulties in reporting the fallout from the hurricane beyond its initial impact on the island.

— bridget read, Vogue, "Hurricane Maria’s Death Toll in Puerto Rico May Exceed 4,600, Thousands Higher Than Initial Count," 29 May 2018
But despite his flawed methodology, Fryer is a darling among the smart, white elite who point to him as a bootstrap-puller.

— michael harriot, The Root, "Black Harvard Professor, Often Cited to Discredit Black Lives Matter, Accused of Sexual Misconduct," 24 May 2018
This year, the organization changed its methodology to eliminate a curve and give equal weight to test results, growth and performance in comparisons among demographically similar schools.

— alia malik, San Antonio Express-News, "San Antonio not closing educational achievement gap with major Texas metros, study finds," 20 May 2018
His methodology consisted of making a single portrait, then painting several exact copies of that portrait, and then starting a new series based on a new original.

— Fortune, "The 10 Biggest Surprises From the $828 Million Rockefeller Auction," 12 May 2018
Nationally, postings fell about 1.4 percent, the report said, adding that its methodology is being reviewed to ensure accuracy amid potentially changing market trends.

— bill zimmerman, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Orlando job postings online fall in April, report says," 2 May 2018
Among the three gold standard pollsters (i.e. those who use live interviews, call cellphones and are transparent about their methodology), the average error dropped to only 3.8 percentage points.

— harry enten, CNN, "Don't trust the polls? You should. They've been fairly accurate so far this election cycle.," 2 May 2018
The danger for the Saints is to think too highly of themselves like their 2014 methodology.

— larry holder, NOLA.com, "Learning from 2014 NFL Draft debacle a must for 2018 Saints," 25 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'methodology.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

methodology and Science

The methodology employed in an experiment is essential to its success, and bad methodology has spoiled thousands of research projects. So whenever a piece of research is published in a scientific or medical journal, the researchers always carefully describe their methodology; otherwise, other scientists couldn't possibly judge the quality of what they've done.