heuristic

Meanings

Adjective

• That employs a practical method not guaranteed to be optimal or perfect; not following or derived from any theory.
• That solves a problem more quickly but is not certain to arrive at an optimal solution.
• That reasons from the value of a method or principle that has been shown by experimental investigation to be a useful aid in learning, discovery and problem-solving.

Noun

• A heuristic method.
• The art of applying heuristic methods.
• A technique designed for solving a problem when classic methods are too slow or fail to find any exact solution.

Origin

• Irregular formation from Ancient Greek εὑρίσκω ("I find, discover") (compare the proper Greek term εὑρετικός).