experimental variable
- noun
- /ɪkˌspɛrɪˈmɛntəl ˈvɛrɪəbl/
- Specialized
:
variable experimental
- In the study, the researchers adjusted the experimental variable to see how it influenced the results.
- effect of experimental variable
Examples
-
By moving a small part of the ecosystem into the laboratory, experimental variables can be controlled more effectively than in the actual ecosystem.
Academic text (1995) -
In conclusion, the aforementioned results indicate that we successfully manipulated the experimental variables.
Academic text (2001) -
The experimental variable, Skill, is as defined above.
Academic text (2003) -
The only significant effect of consequences emerged in the interaction with the three other experimental variables.
Academic text (2001) -
The experimental variables for H2 are the expert system and contract choice.
Academic text (2003) -
With the pretest score used as the covariate, such an analysis shows the effect of experimental variables.
Academic text (1997) -
There was no effect for the experimental variable on perspective-taking (p > .50).
Academic text (2000) -
The experimental variable for H1 is skill measured multidimensionally based on task requirements.
Academic text (2003) -
The analyses in Table 5 were repeated (not shown) using Perskill instead of Skill as the experimental variable.
Academic text (2003) -
To understand the impact of temperature, the team changed the experimental variable during the experiment.
Synonyms
1
4.9
A part of an experiment where researchers change one thing to see its effect compared with a control group
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly built from 'experimental' (related to experiments) modifying 'variable' (an element that can assume values), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a variable used or manipulated in an experiment. This noun-modifier composition is a common, transparent pattern in English (and in many other languages), making the MWE immediately understandable at B1 level.
Etymology
Experimental variable comes from work in a lab: imagine a scientist changing one thing, the variable, during an experiment, the experimental part, to watch what happens. So it means 'a thing you change on purpose to see its effect'.