empirically
adv. C1 Advanced US //ɛmˈpɪɹɪkəɫi// UK //ɛmpˈɪɹɪkli// em·pir·i·cal·ly
adv. based on facts or evidence that you can see, hear, or measure. You use this to describe things that are proven by real-world experience rather than just theory.
adv. based on or relating to experience and observation rather than theory or pure logic. Often used to describe results that have been verified through scientific testing or data collection.
The results of the experiment were empirically proven.
The theory was eventually accepted because it was empirically supported by decades of research and observation.
While the hypothesis was elegant in its simplicity, it failed to hold up empirically when tested against the vast and varied data sets collected by the international research team.
From empirical + -ly.