theory
part of speech
noun (a theory, theories; theory — uncountable)
meaning for a pupil
1) (science) A theory is a well-tested explanation of how something in nature works, supported by a lot of evidence, like the theory of evolution or the theory of gravity. tree →
2) A theory is an idea someone has to explain something, which may or may not be true, as in "I have a theory about who ate the cake". tree →
3) Theory is the ideas and rules of a subject, as opposed to practice, like music theory. tree →
4) "In theory" means what should happen if things go as planned, though they might not. tree →
sense in the lessons
In science lessons, pupils learn that a scientific theory is not just a guess: it has been tested many times. In stories, a detective forms a theory about the crime. In music lessons, theory means notes, scales and rhythm rules. Phrases: "in theory", "come up with a theory", "test a theory", "theory and practice", "conspiracy theory".
examples
- Darwin's theory of evolution explains how living things change over time. tree →
- I have a theory that the cat ate the fish fingers. tree →
- In theory, the bus comes every ten minutes, but it never does. tree →
- The detective tested her theory by checking the footprints. tree →
- I passed my music theory exam. tree →
- Scientists test a theory by doing experiments. tree →
- (informal) Some people believe in silly conspiracy theories. tree →
- "I am not prepared to form a theory about these stories. tree →
note
Plural: theories (y → ies). Adjective: theoretical. A common trap: in everyday talk "just a theory" means a guess, but in science a theory is a strong, tested explanation. A "hypothesis" is the smaller idea you test in an experiment.
In the corpora
- A chihuahua and a Great Dane are the same species and could in theory have puppies together.
- Before germ theory, many people believed illness came from bad air, called miasma.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «theory» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.