English

Noun

experimentalism ‎(usually uncountable, plural experimentalisms)

1. An experimental practice or tendency, especially in the arts
   • 2007 June 13, Allan Kozinn, “Beethoven’s Adventures: A Narrative and Context”, in New York Times:

     By playing up the lushness of Webern’s “Langsamer Satz” and the experimentalism of Beethoven’s “Serioso” Quartet, for example, they created the impression that Beethoven was the more adventurous composer.

2. (philosophy) An empirical or pragmatic approach which emphasizes the importance of experimentation
   • 2007 August 8, S. Matthew Liao, “A defense of intuitions”, in Philosophical Studies, volume 140, number 2, DOI:10.1007/s11098-007-9140-x:

     Finally, I argued that moderate experimentalism and IAE can help resolve these different kinds of conflicts.

Related terms

• experimentalist
• experimentally
• experimental