hy ‧ poth ‧ e ‧ sis AC /haɪˈpɒθəsəs, haɪˈpɒθəsɪs $ -ˈpɑː-/ BrE AmE noun ( plural hypotheses /-siːz/)
[ Word Family: verb : ↑ hypothesize ; noun : ↑ hypothesis ; adverb : ↑ hypothetically ; adjective : ↑ hypothetical ]
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Greek ; Origin: hypotithenai 'to put under, hypothesize' ]
1 . [countable] an idea that is suggested as an explanation for something, but that has not yet been proved to be true SYN theory :
One hypothesis is that the victim fell asleep while driving.
prove/test/support etc a hypothesis
We hope that further research will confirm our hypothesis.
hypothesis about
The authors reject the hypothesis about unemployment contributing to crime.
2 . [uncountable] ideas or guesses, rather than facts SYN speculation :
All this is mere hypothesis.