ENGLISH
REFERENCE

hypo

n. countable
C1 Advanced US //ˈhaɪpoʊ// UK //hˈaɪpəʊ// hy·po Archaic Informal Slang Economics Finance Law Photography Zoology
Definition

n. a short way of saying 'hypothesis'. You use it in science or business to talk about an idea that you will test to see if it is true.

n. a shortened form of 'hypothesis', referring to a proposed explanation or prediction that can be tested through observation or experimentation.


SIMPLE

We need to test our hypo before we start the experiment.

CONTEXTUAL

The marketing team developed a new hypo regarding how social media trends affect consumer spending habits.

COMPLEX

While the initial data supported the hypo, the researchers remained cautious until they could replicate the results across several different demographic groups.

Origin

Clipping of various terms beginning with hypo-, from Ancient Greek ὑπό (hupó, “under”).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Related words

Last updated June 22, 2026