heuristic

1 of 2

adjective

heu·​ris·​tic hyu̇-ˈri-stik How to pronounce heuristic (audio)
: involving or serving as an aid to learning, discovery, or problem-solving by experimental and especially trial-and-error methods
heuristic techniques
a heuristic assumption
also : of or relating to exploratory problem-solving techniques that utilize self-educating techniques (such as the evaluation of feedback) to improve performance
a heuristic computer program
heuristically adverb

heuristic

2 of 2

noun

1
: the study or practice of heuristic (see heuristic entry 1) procedure
2
: heuristic (see heuristic entry 1) argument
3
: a heuristic (see heuristic entry 1) method or procedure

Examples of heuristic in a Sentence

Adjective If Orbitz prevails, its online reservation process alone may blow away the competition. Unlike mainframe-based systems …  , Orbitz uses racks of PCs to search fare data, making it easier to scale up computing power. And its intelligent … algorithms evaluate all the possible fares simultaneously instead of employing heuristic shortcuts designed to use as little computing power as possible. Evan Ratliff, WIRED, September 2000
Because "tradition" has served as a powerful heuristic term, we are always in danger of reifying it … Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Reading Black, Reading Feminist, 1990
Its heuristic principle would be St. Augustine's axiom that the Old Testament is revealed in the New and the New concealed in the Old … V. B. Leitch, American Literary Criticism from the Thirties to the Eighties, 1988
Noun "Cult" is best understood not as a descriptor, but as a command, like a law officer's "Halt!" Its purpose is to stop and contain. A more useful heuristic would be to identify precisely the most disturbing practices, beliefs, or incidents in the world of a "cult" … Robert A. Orsi, Commonweal, 6 Oct. 2000
Search engines … use heuristics to determine the way in which to order—and thereby prioritize—pages. Soumen Chakrabarti et al., Scientific American, June 1999
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
In testing, ZoneAlarm detected 99% of real-world phishing pages, relying both on blacklisting and on an unusual heuristic analysis technique. PCMAG, 30 July 2024 Six ways to avoid the affect heuristic Avoiding the pitfalls of the affect heuristic involves cultivating an awareness of its influence and actively engaging System 2 thinking. Bryce Hoffman, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2024
Noun
The robot hadn’t been explicitly programmed, using traditional heuristics, to make that move. Hans Peter Brondmo, WIRED, 10 Sep. 2024 The Power of Subtle Nudges Most micro-decisions happen automatically, driven by habits, routines, and heuristics—mental shortcuts our brains use to make quick decisions. Roger Dooley, Forbes, 4 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for heuristic 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'heuristic.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Noun

German heuristisch, from New Latin heuristicus, from Greek heuriskein to discover; akin to Old Irish fo-fúair he found

First Known Use

Adjective

1821, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1860, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of heuristic was in 1821

Dictionary Entries Near heuristic

Cite this Entry

“Heuristic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heuristic. Accessed 1 Oct. 2024.

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