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Academic English & Research vocabulary · Research Design

Empirical

Meaning in academic english & research, with examples

/ɪmˈpɪrɪkl/adjectiveCore term

In academic english & research, empirical means: Based on observation, measurement or experience rather than only on theory or logical reasoning.

In Turkish: görgül, ampirik, deneyime dayalı

How it is used

Very common in phrases such as empirical study, empirical evidence, empirical data and empirical research. An empirical paper collects or analyzes data; a conceptual or theoretical paper does not. The adverb is empirically: 'empirically tested'.

Example sentences

  1. There is little empirical evidence to support this claim.

  2. Most empirical studies in this area have used survey data.

Common collocations

  • empirical evidence
  • empirical study
  • empirical data
  • empirically tested
  • evidenceFacts, data or findings that show whether a claim or idea is true or likely to be true.
  • dataFacts, numbers, recordings, texts or observations collected in a study and then analyzed to answer a research question.
  • theoretical frameworkThe theory or set of connected theories that a study uses to explain its problem, shape its questions and interpret its findings.
  • quantitativeDescribing research that collects numerical data and uses statistics to measure, compare or test relationships, often with larger samples.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Research Design

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