as in theoretic
existing only as an assumption or speculation
we talked about what we would do in various hypothetical emergencies
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in assumption
something taken as being true or factual and used as a starting point for a course of action or reasoning
believes that predictions of the extinction of certain species as the result of global warming are based upon too many hypotheticals
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Recent Examples of hypothetical
Grace Gilson, Sun Sentinel, 9 June 2025
Consider this hypothetical example: Suppose two friends, Rachel and Joey, want to each invest $5,000 annually in a retirement account with a 7% average annual return.
—True Tamplin, Forbes.com, 9 June 2025
How might one weigh that hypothetical suffering against the actual misery and destruction caused by the Civil War?
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
One question on a sample exam Chisholm provided asks students to write a formula for determining the total number of cases during a hypothetical epidemic after a certain amount of days.
—Melissa Goldin, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for hypothetical
Adjective
On June 4, Banks compared Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on the Nova music festival to a hypothetical fatal attack on California’s Coachella music festival.
—Grace Gilson, Sun Sentinel, 9 June 2025
Consider this hypothetical example: Suppose two friends, Rachel and Joey, want to each invest $5,000 annually in a retirement account with a 7% average annual return.
—True Tamplin, Forbes.com, 9 June 2025
How might one weigh that hypothetical suffering against the actual misery and destruction caused by the Civil War?
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
One question on a sample exam Chisholm provided asks students to write a formula for determining the total number of cases during a hypothetical epidemic after a certain amount of days.
—Melissa Goldin, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for hypothetical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hypothetical
Noun
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Courts are also increasingly scrutinizing environmental claims—down to the assumptions behind individual offsets.—
Felicia Jackson,
Forbes.com,
3 June 2025
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Mass incarceration, which swept the country in the late twentieth century, rested on the assumption that a person spoiling for a fight with another person was weighing costs: that the difference between ten years and twenty-five would matter.—
Malcolm Gladwell,
New Yorker,
2 June 2025
Adjective
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Luxury facilities, non-teaching research ventures, speculative real estate holdings—those could justifiably be subject to tax.—
Matthew Scogin,
Forbes.com,
10 June 2025
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The lawsuit’s claim that retaliation from the Trump administration could be imminent for schools that do not comply with the administration’s demands is not entirely speculative.—
Kevin Rector,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2025
Noun
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But the people interviewed for this story float several theories.—
Tyler Hicks,
Rolling Stone,
5 June 2025
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As fear grew in 2023 over the failure to reach a deal on raising the debt ceiling, the White House was said to be considering an option of last resort: an untested legal theory that involves invoking the 14th Amendment.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
4 June 2025
Adjective
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My expertise in information technology over a 30-year journey often requires an immersion of innovative technologies, such as AI, to bridge theoretical knowledge with practical application.—
Deanna Laster,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2025
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And the consequences of those delays were not theoretical.—
Dr. Shelley Sella,
Time,
11 June 2025
Noun
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The best evidence for this hypothesis comes from micro-caps.—
Shivaram Rajgopal,
Forbes.com,
8 June 2025
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This hypothesis, formulated by the mineralogist Robert Hazen and the astrobiologist Michael Wong of the Carnegie Institution in Washington, DC, along with a team of others, has provoked intense debate.—
Philip Ball,
Wired News,
8 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hypothetical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hypothetical. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.
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