meaning of french word hypothesis

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▾ dictionary english-french, hypothesis noun ( plural: hypotheses ) —, hypothèse f (almost always used) ( plural: hypothèses f ), null hypothesis n —, hypothesis testing n —, working hypothesis n —, alternative hypothesis n —, alternate hypothesis n —, main hypothesis n —, original hypothesis n —, initial hypothesis n —, basic hypothesis n —, starting hypothesis n —, stated hypothesis n —, first hypothesis n —, last hypothesis n —, plausible hypothesis n —, average hypothesis n —, cautious hypothesis n —, median hypothesis n —, fundamental hypothesis n —, scientific hypothesis n —, research hypothesis n —, hypothesis formulated n —, mere hypothesis n —, realistic hypothesis n —, hypothesis adopted n —, reasonable hypothesis n —, hypothesis envisaged n —, selected hypothesis n —, latter hypothesis n —, ▸ wikipedia, ▾ external sources (not reviewed).

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Hypothesis in French – the Uses of Si & Audio Pronunciation

If the weather is nice tomorrow, I will go to the beach. The construction of hypothetical statements (if clauses) requires the use of specific tenses. Hypotheses in French are quite similar to English hypotheses: you need to understand whether you are wishing to change a future, present, or past event. Then apply the correct tenses.

Many students search how to translate “if” in French. But it’s not really the translation of “if” in French that’s complicated, but the tenses you need to use when using “if” sentences.

Actually, the tenses in French are the same as in English. Yet that doesn’t make French conjugations any easier!

So my advise is to memorize the examples I’m going to use below. And just copy their constructions!

Let’s start by seeing how we say “if” in French

What is “if” in French?

If in French is “si”. When “if” is followed by “il(s)” in French, then it will take elision and become “s’il(s)”. But that’s the only case: “si” will remain “si” when followed by any other vowel, mute h, even “elle(s0”.

Je ne sais pas s’il viendra demain. I don’t know if he will come tomorrow. But Je ne sais pas si elle viendra demain. I don’t know if she will come tomorrow.

Click on the link below to listen to my audio recording of this lesson.

The 3 French Hypotheses – Si Clauses

The Key to understanding “si clauses” / hypothesis in French (as in English actually) is to understand the time frame of the event you are wishing to change:

• Hypothesis on the future (what you will do in the future if the conditions you wish for come together)
• Hypothesis on the present (what you would be doing now in a parallel reality where things would not be as they are now…)
• Hypothesis on the past (what you would have done in a parallel reality in the past if the conditions had not been what they were).

The constructions of these hypothetical statements follow very strict tense rules in French (they are actually the same as in English). I suggest you remember the examples used to illustrate these rules and different kind of hypotheses.

A – Hypothesis That CAN Become Real – (called Hypothesis on the future in French)

Use this construction if you are talking about something that is happening in the future, or right now, but with a strong chance of it becoming a reality  = full hope.

• Si + present / future Demain, s’il pleut, tu iras au musée, et s’il fait beau, tu iras à la plage (we all know how hypothetical the weather forecast is….) Tomorrow, if it rains, you will go to the museum, and if it’s nice out, you will go to the beach.

Note: This hypothesis CAN become a reality. The conditions you are talking about are in the future, they might or might not become a reality. This is the hypothesis parents use all the time with children… “ Si tu manges toute ta viande, tu auras une glace ” (If you eat all your meat you’ll have some ice cream.)

Instead of the simple future, we also use the near future construction: aller + infinitive. Si tu manges trop de glace, tu vas avoir mal au ventre. If you eat too much ice-cream, you’re going to have a tummy ache (I believe English speakers would say will here, to reinforce the certainty of it. In French, it’s the contrary, we’d use the near future to reinforce the likeliness of it to become a reality).

B – Alternative Present Reality (called hypothesis on the present in French)

Use this construction to express an alternative present reality. You are in a certain situation, and you are saying what you would do if it was not so.

• Si + imperfect /present conditional S’il faisait beau maintenant, tu irais à la plage (but it’s raining now) If it was nice out now, you would go to the beach.

The statements for this sort of hypothesis often end with a  “but + stating the real situation”. If she was rich, she would buy a boat (but she is not rich…)

This hypothesis CANNOT become a reality right now. However it often carries a notion of wish: she is not rich, but maybe one day she’ll be rich. It’s raining now, but maybe it will clear up and then you’ll go to the beach.

The conditional mood as well as hypothesis are explained in depth with many, many examples, exercises, and an ongoing story to illustrate all the points of grammar in my audiobook À Moi Paris L7 .

A new approach to learning both traditional and modern French logically structured for English speakers.

More Details & Audio Samples

C – Alternative Past Reality (called hypothesis on the past in French)

Use this construction if you are talking about something that happened before, that has ended now = there is no more hope = expressing a regret, bitching about what did not happen but you wished did.

• Si + pluperfect / past conditional Hier, s’il avait fait beau, tu serais allé(e) à la plage (but it rained all day…) Yesterday, if it had been nice out, you would have gone to the beach.

Note: This hypothesis CANNOT become a reality at all. Y ou are talking about a past event. You are saying what you would have done if the conditions had not been what they were.

Reminder: The pluperfect follows the same agreement rules as passé composé , but with être / avoir in imperfect. The past conditional follows the same agreement rules as passé composé, but with être / avoir in conditional present.

Check out my verb drills to train on these tenses.

Where To Place the French “if”?

In French just like in English, you can also reverse the order of the sentence: “You would have gone to the beach if the weather had been nice.” “ Tu serais allé(e) à la plage s’il avait fait beau “.

“If” for “When” in French

I am not sure whether it is grammatically correct, but we use it a lot in spoken French.

• Si + present / present Si je gagne au loto, j’achète une voiture. If/when I win the lottery, I am buying a car.

The concept here is the instant reaction. It is no longer a hypothesis on what I will do, since what I will do is a certainty once the first condition happens – hence the same time line… It makes the sentence much more dynamic than si + present /future.

“Si” Instead of “Oui” in French

This has nothing to do with hypothesis, but I’ll talk about it since this often confuses students.

The French word for yes is “oui”.

However, we sometimes use “si” to contradict a statement made in the negative form. Sort of “why, yes, I do”.

It will be clearer with an exemple.

• Tu aimes le chocolat ? – oui (j’aime le chocolat) – yes I do – non (je n’aime pas le chocolat) – no, I don’t.
• Tu n’aimes pas le chocolat ? (question in the negative) – non (je n’aime pas le chocolat = No, I don’t like chocolate= I agree with you) – si, j’aime le chocolat (No! I don’t agree with you: I do like chocolate)

Train with the concept of “si” and hypothesis in French with audio in this free French story written by my French Skype student John in intermediate French, and recorded by me.

Good luck with your French studies, and remember, repetition is the key!

Camille Chevalier-Karfis

Born and raised in Paris, I have been teaching today's French to adults for 25+ years in the US and France. Based on my students' goals and needs, I've created unique downloadable French audiobooks focussing on French like it's spoken today, for all levels. Come to Paimpol and enjoy an exclusive French immersion homestay with me in Brittany .

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Hypothesis in French : If clauses with a French twist

If you want to express a hypothesis (I wish / if only / what if/ in case / suppose (that) in French, what you need is a conditional or if clause.  French is no different from English in this matter and consists of similar grammar rules. However, grammar tenses can make a difference so stay tuned to learn how French express hypotheses.

What is a hypothesis?

Si clauses, also known as conditionals or conditional sentences, are “if constructions” that express a condition to be met in order for a certain result to occur. The names of conditionals are sometimes misleading because not all of them contain a verb in conditional. It’s because the names do not refer to that verb mood, but to the fact that each conditional sentence includes a condition, something that determines the result.

Understanding comes with context, so let’s take a look at the following example. In the following sentence, there’s an obvious condition that determines another action.

Only in the case person comes, she will make a telephone call.

Si tu viens, téléphone-moi.

If you come, call me.

This type of conditional sentence is called a possible condition. But, there are also impossible and probable conditions, which are expressed with past tenses.

Finally, there are three types of conditional sentences, depending on whether the condition is likely, unlikely, or impossible to happen. A specific combination of verb tenses and moods for each type allows you to distinguish and model each one of the conditional sentences.

“If” in French

If in French is “si”. Si elision happens in case “if” is followed by “il(s)” so it becomes “s’il(s)”.

However, if “si” is followed by any other vowel, mute h, even “elle”, it remains unchanged.

Je ne sais pas s’il achetera le pain demain.

I don’t know if he will buy bread tomorrow.

Je ne sais pas si elle achetera le pain demain.

I don’t know if she will buy bread tomorrow.

If clauses – Structure in French

The French constructions of these hypothetical statements follow very strict tense rules (the same as the English ones).

As we mentioned, three conditional options are available, a possible condition, a hypothetical condition, and an impossible condition. They are all linked to a specific tense. The possible condition happens in the present, hypothetical condition uses imperfect, and impossible conditions use the plusquemparfect. Each sentence structure is actually a combination of two tenses and it must be learned by heart.

The best way to learn the combinations is to memorize one example for each conditional structure.

I – Conditional – Possible Condition

Action will occur in the present or the future provided another occurs.

Si + present indicative, verb in present, future or imperative

II – Conditional – Hypothetical condition in the past

The hypothesis is located in the present or the future , while the action envisaged has little chance of being carried out.

Si + imperfect, present conditional verb

Si j’allais  à Londre, j’irais chaque soir voir un spectacle. 

If I went to London, I would go to see a show every night.

III – Conditional – Unreal past condition

The hypothesis is located in the past and the action envisaged has not been carried out.

Si+ plus-que-parfait, verbe au conditionnel passé

S’il m’avait téléphoné, je lui aurais expliqué la situation.

If he had called me, I would have explained the situation to him.

Conjuctions instead of si

À condition que+ subjonctif  (general value).

Je te prêterai l’argent à condition que tu me le rendes la semaine prochaine.

Pourvu que + subjonctif (necessary condition).

Tu pourras voyager pourvu que les  bus ne fasse pas de grève.

Pour peu que + subjonctif  (minimum requirement).

Elle rougit pour peu qu’on lui fassent un compliment.

À supposer que/ En attendant que + subjonctif   (Hypothesis chosen by the speaker).

À supposer qu’elle ne vienne pas, nous partirons le soir.

Au cas où + conditionnel  (Hypothesis that does not depend on the speaker).

Nous resterons à l’hôtel au cas où il neigait.

If you learn French this summer, you’ll be cool.

The ultimate truth! Whoever speaks French gets the reputation of being an interesting person. Mastering French conditional sentences allows you to talk about conditions or obstacles on your way to getting the desired outcome. The fact French conditional sentences are so similar to English “ if clauses ” makes it easy to get started.

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hypothesis (n.)

1590s, "a particular statement;" 1650s, "a proposition, assumed and taken for granted, used as a premise," from French hypothese and directly from Late Latin hypothesis , from Greek hypothesis "base, groundwork, foundation," hence in extended use "basis of an argument, supposition," literally "a placing under," from hypo- "under" (see hypo- ) + thesis "a placing, proposition" (from reduplicated form of PIE root *dhe- "to set, put"). A term in logic; narrower scientific sense is from 1640s.

Entries linking to hypothesis

1530s, "action, a thing performed, anything done, a deed," good or evil but in 16c.-17c. commonly "evil deed, crime;" from Latin factum "an event, occurrence, deed, achievement," in Medieval Latin also "state, condition, circumstance" (source also of Old French fait , Spanish hecho , Italian fatto ), etymologically "a thing done," noun use of neuter of factus , past participle of facere "to do" (from PIE root *dhe- "to set, put").

An earlier adaptation of the Old French word that also became feat . The older senses are mostly obsolete but somewhat preserved in such phrases as after the fact , originally legal, "after the crime." Also compare matter-of-fact .

The modern, empirical, sense of "thing known to be true, a real state of things, what has really occurred or is actually the case," as distinguished from statement or belief , is from 1630s, from the notion of "something that has actually occurred." The particular concept of the scientific, empirical fact ("a truth known by observation or authentic testimony") emerged in English 1660s, via Hooke, Boyle, etc., in The Royal Society, as part of the creation of the modern vocabulary of knowledge (along with theory , hypothesis , etc.); in early 18c. it was associated with the philosophical writings of Hume. Middle English thus lacked the noun and the idea of it; the closest expression being perhaps thing proved (c.1500).

Hence facts "real state of things;" in fact "in reality" (1707). By 1729, fact was being used of "something presented as a fact but which might be or is false."

By fact is also often meant a true statement, a truth, or truth in general ; but this seems to be a mere inexactness of language .... Fact , as being special, is sometimes opposed to truth , as being universal ; and in such cases there is an implication that facts are minute matters ascertained by research, and often inferior in their importance for the formation of general opinions, or for the general description of phenomena, to other matters which are of familiar experience. [Century Dictionary]

Facts of life is by 1854 as "the stark realities of existence;" by 1913 it had also acquired a more specific sense of "knowledge of human sexual functions." The alliterative pairing of facts and figures for "precise information" is by 1727.

Facts and Figures are the most stubborn Evidences; they neither yield to the most persuasive Eloquence, nor bend to the most imperious Authority. [Abel Boyer, "The Political State of Great Britain," 1727]

plural of hypothesis .

hypothesize

hypothetical

• supposition
• See all related words ( 8 ) >

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Dictionary entries near hypothesis

hypothalamus

hypothecate

hypothermia

hypothesise

• English (English)
• 简体中文 (Chinese)
• Deutsch (German)
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• Français (French)
• Italiano (Italian)
• 日本語 (Japanese)
• 한국어 (Korean)
• Português (Portuguese)
• 繁體中文 (Chinese)

• 1.1 Etymology
• 1.2 Pronunciation
• 1.3.1 Synonyms
• 1.3.2 Derived terms
• 1.3.3 Translations
• 2.1 Etymology
• 2.2 Pronunciation
• 2.3.1 Declension

English [ edit ]

Etymology [ edit ].

Recorded since 1596, from Middle French hypothese , from Late Latin hypothesis , from Ancient Greek ὑπόθεσις ( hupóthesis , “ base, basis of an argument, supposition ” , literally “ a placing under ” ) , itself from ὑποτίθημι ( hupotíthēmi , “ I set before, suggest ” ) , from ὑπό ( hupó , “ below ” ) + τίθημι ( títhēmi , “ I put, place ” ) .

Pronunciation [ edit ]

• ( UK ) IPA ( key ) : /haɪˈpɒθɪsɪs/ , /hɪˈpɒθɪsɪs/ , /həˈpɒθɪsɪs/ , /-əsəs/ , /-əsɪs/
• ( US ) IPA ( key ) : /haɪˈpɑː.θə.sɪs/

Noun [ edit ]

hypothesis ( plural hypotheses )

• 2001 September 27, Terrie E. Moffitt, Avshalom Caspi, Michael Rutter, Phil A. Silva, Sex Differences in Antisocial Behaviour: Conduct Disorder, Delinquency, and Violence in the Dunedin Longitudinal Study ‎ [1] , Cambridge University Press , →ISBN , page 151 : This hypothesis goes by many names, including group resistence, the threshold effect, and the gender paradox. Because the hypothesis holds such wide appeal, it is worth revisiting the logic behind it. The hypothesis is built on the factual observation that fewer females than males act antisocially.
• 2005 , Ronald H. Pine, http://www.csicop.org/specialarticles/show/intelligent_design_or_no_model_creationism , 15 October 2005: Far too many of us have been taught in school that a scientist, in the course of trying to figure something out, will first come up with a " hypothesis " (a guess or surmise—not necessarily even an "educated" guess). ... [But t]he word " hypothesis " should be used, in science, exclusively for a reasoned, sensible, knowledge-informed explanation for why some phenomenon exists or occurs. An hypothesis can be as yet untested; can have already been tested; may have been falsified; may have not yet been falsified, although tested; or may have been tested in a myriad of ways countless times without being falsified; and it may come to be universally accepted by the scientific community. An understanding of the word " hypothesis ," as used in science, requires a grasp of the principles underlying Occam's Razor and Karl Popper's thought in regard to " falsifiability "—including the notion that any respectable scientific hypothesis must, in principle, be "capable of" being proven wrong (if it should, in fact, just happen to be wrong), but none can ever be proved to be true. One aspect of a proper understanding of the word " hypothesis ," as used in science, is that only a vanishingly small percentage of hypotheses could ever potentially become a theory.
• ( general ) An assumption taken to be true for the purpose of argument or investigation .
• ( grammar ) The antecedent of a conditional statement .

Synonyms [ edit ]

• supposition
• educated guess
• See also Thesaurus:supposition

Derived terms [ edit ]

• alternative hypothesis
• aquatic ape hypothesis
• Avogadro's hypothesis
• conspiracy hypothesis
• continuum hypothesis
• cosmic censorship hypothesis
• documentary hypothesis
• efficient market hypothesis
• ergodic hypothesis
• expectations hypothesis
• Fisher hypothesis
• Gaia hypothesis
• generalized continuum hypothesis
• God hypothesis
• Griesbach hypothesis
• hypothesize
• hypothetical
• hypothetically
• interface hypothesis
• just-world hypothesis
• level-ordering hypothesis
• mafia hypothesis
• Medea hypothesis
• Monro-Kellie hypothesis
• null hypothesis
• Omphalos hypothesis
• Out of India hypothesis
• ovulatory shift hypothesis
• permanent income hypothesis
• Prout's hypothesis
• Rare Earth hypothesis
• Red Queen hypothesis
• Riemann hypothesis
• Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
• Schinzel's hypothesis H
• sexy son hypothesis
• simulation hypothesis
• swoon hypothesis
• trickle-down hypothesis
• trickle down hypothesis
• Wellhausen's hypothesis
• working hypothesis
• zombie hypothesis

Translations [ edit ]

Latin [ edit ].

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ὑπόθεσις ( hupóthesis , “ hypothesis ” , noun ) .

• ( Classical ) IPA ( key ) : /hyˈpo.tʰe.sis/ , [hʏˈpɔt̪ʰɛs̠ɪs̠]
• ( modern Italianate Ecclesiastical ) IPA ( key ) : /iˈpo.te.sis/ , [iˈpɔːt̪es̬is]

hypothesis   f ( genitive hypothesis or hypotheseōs or hypothesios ) ; third declension

Declension [ edit ]

1 Found sometimes in Medieval and New Latin.

• There is also genitive plural hypotheseōn .
• The genitive singular is also spelled hypotheseωs and the genitive plural hypotheseωn .

• English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
• English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *dʰeh₁-
• English terms borrowed from Middle French
• English terms derived from Middle French
• English terms derived from Late Latin
• English terms derived from Ancient Greek
• English 4-syllable words
• English terms with IPA pronunciation
• English terms with audio links
• English lemmas
• English nouns
• English countable nouns
• English nouns with irregular plurals
• en:Sciences
• English terms with quotations
• Latin terms borrowed from Ancient Greek
• Latin terms derived from Ancient Greek
• Latin 4-syllable words
• Latin terms with IPA pronunciation
• Latin lemmas
• Latin nouns
• Latin third declension nouns
• Latin feminine nouns in the third declension
• Latin terms spelled with Y
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Definition of hypothesis

Did you know.

The Difference Between Hypothesis and Theory

A hypothesis is an assumption, an idea that is proposed for the sake of argument so that it can be tested to see if it might be true.

In the scientific method, the hypothesis is constructed before any applicable research has been done, apart from a basic background review. You ask a question, read up on what has been studied before, and then form a hypothesis.

A hypothesis is usually tentative; it's an assumption or suggestion made strictly for the objective of being tested.

A theory , in contrast, is a principle that has been formed as an attempt to explain things that have already been substantiated by data. It is used in the names of a number of principles accepted in the scientific community, such as the Big Bang Theory . Because of the rigors of experimentation and control, it is understood to be more likely to be true than a hypothesis is.

In non-scientific use, however, hypothesis and theory are often used interchangeably to mean simply an idea, speculation, or hunch, with theory being the more common choice.

Since this casual use does away with the distinctions upheld by the scientific community, hypothesis and theory are prone to being wrongly interpreted even when they are encountered in scientific contexts—or at least, contexts that allude to scientific study without making the critical distinction that scientists employ when weighing hypotheses and theories.

The most common occurrence is when theory is interpreted—and sometimes even gleefully seized upon—to mean something having less truth value than other scientific principles. (The word law applies to principles so firmly established that they are almost never questioned, such as the law of gravity.)

This mistake is one of projection: since we use theory in general to mean something lightly speculated, then it's implied that scientists must be talking about the same level of uncertainty when they use theory to refer to their well-tested and reasoned principles.

The distinction has come to the forefront particularly on occasions when the content of science curricula in schools has been challenged—notably, when a school board in Georgia put stickers on textbooks stating that evolution was "a theory, not a fact, regarding the origin of living things." As Kenneth R. Miller, a cell biologist at Brown University, has said , a theory "doesn’t mean a hunch or a guess. A theory is a system of explanations that ties together a whole bunch of facts. It not only explains those facts, but predicts what you ought to find from other observations and experiments.”

While theories are never completely infallible, they form the basis of scientific reasoning because, as Miller said "to the best of our ability, we’ve tested them, and they’ve held up."

• proposition
• supposition

hypothesis , theory , law mean a formula derived by inference from scientific data that explains a principle operating in nature.

hypothesis implies insufficient evidence to provide more than a tentative explanation.

theory implies a greater range of evidence and greater likelihood of truth.

law implies a statement of order and relation in nature that has been found to be invariable under the same conditions.

Examples of hypothesis in a Sentence

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

Word History

Greek, from hypotithenai to put under, suppose, from hypo- + tithenai to put — more at do

1641, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing hypothesis

• counter - hypothesis
• nebular hypothesis
• Whorfian hypothesis
• null hypothesis
• planetesimal hypothesis

Articles Related to hypothesis

This is the Difference Between a...

This is the Difference Between a Hypothesis and a Theory

In scientific reasoning, they're two completely different things

Dictionary Entries Near hypothesis

hypothermia

hypothesize

Cite this Entry

“Hypothesis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hypothesis. Accessed 13 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of hypothesis, medical definition, medical definition of hypothesis, more from merriam-webster on hypothesis.

Nglish: Translation of hypothesis for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of hypothesis for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about hypothesis

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Definition of 'hypothesis'

Video: pronunciation of hypothesis

hypothesis in American English

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In other languages hypothesis

• American English : hypothesis / haɪˈpɒθɪsɪs /
• Brazilian Portuguese : hipótese
• Chinese : 假设
• European Spanish : hipótesis
• French : hypothèse
• German : Hypothese
• Italian : ipotesi
• Japanese : 仮説
• Korean : 가설
• European Portuguese : hipótese
• Spanish : hipótesis
• Thai : สมมุติฐาน

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Related terms of hypothesis

• Gaia hypothesis
• null hypothesis
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Meaning of hypothesis in English

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• abstraction
• afterthought
• anthropocentrism
• anti-Darwinian
• exceptionalism
• foundation stone
• great minds think alike idiom
• non-dogmatic
• non-empirical
• non-material
• non-practical
• social Darwinism
• supersensible
• the domino theory

hypothesis | Intermediate English

Hypothesis | business english, examples of hypothesis, translations of hypothesis.

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acting or speaking together, or at the same time

Alike and analogous (Talking about similarities, Part 1)

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