I. ikˈsperəmənt, ek- also ÷-pir- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French experiment, from Latin experimentum, from experiri to try + -mentum -ment
1.
a. : a test or trial
make another experiment of his suspicion — Shakespeare
b.
(1) : a tentative procedure or policy ; especially : one adopted in uncertainty as to whether it will answer the desired purpose or bring about the desired result
is going to put this hope to the test by trying a political experiment of bold proportions — Harold Callender
(2) : the tangible result of such a procedure or policy
Benavente's earliest literary experiments were four little romantic fantasies published … in 1892 — Current Biography
c. : an act or operation carried out under conditions determined by the experimenter (as in a laboratory) in order to discover some unknown principle or effect or to test, establish, or illustrate some suggested or known truth
the experiments of the defendant's experts lead … to the opinion that a typhoid bacillus could not survive the journey — O.W.Holmes †1935
2. obsolete : experience
by sad experiment I know how little weight my words with thee can find — John Milton
3. obsolete : expedient , remedy
you will find it a sure experiment for the quinsy — William Coles
4. : the process or practice of trying or testing : experimentation
the result of some centuries of experiment tended to raise rather than silence doubt — Henry Adams
II. -ˌment, -_mənt — see -ment II verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English experimenten, from experiment, n.
transitive verb
1. obsolete : to have experience of : experience , feel
thy fatherly mercy … so often experimented by me — Henry Hammond
2. archaic : to discover by experiment
that may be easily experimented in a small bird — Benjamin Martin
3. archaic : to make a trial or test of
several articles were proposed to be experimented, and if found good … to be confirmed — John Entick
intransitive verb
: to engage in experimentation : make experiments
the world has become a laboratory where immature and feverish minds experiment with unknown forces — John Buchan
studied drawing and painting in an art school … and experimented in painting at home — W.H.Downes