NONEMPIRICAL Synonyms: 50 Similar and Opposite Words

nonempirical

adjective

Definition of nonempirical

as in theoretical

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of nonempirical The enforcement of such nonempirical standards as taste and judgment implies a kind of cultural and aesthetic hierarchy that Silicon Valley’s ruling class embraces ruthlessly but will never admit to countenancing. — Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, 20 Oct. 2019 Each story represents a fresh challenge of how to say things in a nonempirical way. — Hilton Als, The New Yorker, 24 June 2018

Recent Examples of Synonyms for nonempirical

Adjective

The new Anthropic models also reportedly solved two theoretical physics problems related to black holes, and identified a way to speed up research into gene therapies.

— Emily Forlini, Fortune, 9 Nov. 2026
That dream was recently proved false, however, when a group of theoretical physicists found that no light-bending material can ever be fully transparent, owing to a quantum process that turns waves of light into waves of sound.

— Matthew von Hippel, Scientific American, 7 Nov. 2026

Definition of theoretical

Adjective

Polish police confirmed to ABC News that the three people found dead in the alleged attacker’s apartment in Ostrowiec Swietokrzyski were his 53-year-old father, 52-year-old mother and 21-year-old sister.

— Dragana Jovanovic, ABC News, 8 Nov. 2026
More problematic is the long history of alleged involvement of deputy gangs in violence, intimidation and other potentially criminal behavior.

— Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2026

Definition of alleged

Adjective

The Supreme Court Despite being asked several times on the campaign trail—thanks to the vacancy left by Antonin Scalia in February 2016—Clinton never revealed her hypothetical pick for late justice’s Supreme Court seat.

— Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Nov. 2026
Often called Planet Nine—poking fun at professional astronomers’ 2006 demotion of Pluto from being the solar system’s ninth planet—this hypothetical body’s existence has been hotly debated, though that hasn’t slowed the search.

— Phil Plait, Scientific American, 6 Nov. 2026

Definition of hypothetical

Adjective

The only way to fully understand the key mechanisms of democracy is through learning their conceptual mathematical foundations.

— Ismar Volić, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026
Firstman had handed him Eric Goode’s book on Area, the legendary 1980s Tribeca club where a corner might display a cheeky conceptual piece by Andy Warhol or a nude model dressed to look like a statue.

— Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of conceptual

Adjective

These smaller upstart computing providers are more speculative bets on the AI boom, with weaker balance sheets than the incumbent megacaps.

— Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2026
She may have been sold to an out-of-state game farm, said sources who spoke to Outdoor Life on the condition that they wouldn’t be identified based on the speculative nature of their hunches.

— Andrew McKean, Outdoor Life, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of speculative

Adjective

Lockheed Martin experts and engineers are using data from previous flights to skip repetitive qualification testing, rather than treating every Orion capsule as an unproven prototype.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2026
Kennedy, a longtime vaccine critic who previously founded an anti-vaccine organization, has expressed doubt about the MMR shot, and has touted unproven remedies instead.

— Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 6 Nov. 2026

Definition of unproven

Adjective

That is sparking a whole industry that markets other peptides — largely unproved and untested — that are said to increase muscle growth, speed recovery and fight aging.

— Jonathan Fahey, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
But Starship still must demonstrate multiple unproved capabilities that are crucial to NASA’s plans—such as the in-space refueling, via multiple launches, that’s required for sending the vehicle out of low-Earth orbit to the moon.

— Lee Billings, Scientific American, 29 May 2026

Definition of unproved

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“Nonempirical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nonempirical. Accessed 12 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of nonempirical

adjective

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