The words hypothesis and law are common synonyms of theory. While all three words mean "a formula derived by inference from scientific data that explains a principle operating in nature," theory implies a greater range of evidence and greater likelihood of truth.
Synonyms
A theory is a carefully thought-out explanation for observations of the natural world that has been constructed using the scientific method, and which brings together many facts and hypotheses. … With these definitions in mind, a simplified version of the scientific process would be as follows.
hypothesis, thesis, conjecture, supposition, speculation, postulation, postulate, proposition, premise, surmise, assumption, presumption, presupposition, notion, guess, hunch, feeling, suspicion. opinion, view, belief, thinking, thought, thoughts, judgement, contention.
Antonyms. unbelief possible impossibility wave theory wave theory of light corpuscular theory of light.
of, relating to, or consisting in theory; not practical (distinguished from applied). existing only in theory; hypothetical. given to, forming, or dealing with theories; speculative.
In everyday use, the word "theory" often means an untested hunch, or a guess without supporting evidence. But for scientists, a theory has nearly the opposite meaning. A theory is a well-substantiated explanation of an aspect of the natural world that can incorporate laws, hypotheses and facts.
In scientific reasoning, a hypothesis is an assumption made before any research has been completed for the sake of testing. A theory on the other hand is a principle set to explain phenomena already supported by data. … And that's where we see the difference between a hypothesis and a theory.
The correct answer is (B) Scientific theory components are combined in different ways to produce different theories in much the same way that beads…