What is a hypothesis?

A hypothesis is best defined as a tentative statement about the natural world that leads to deductions that can be tested. This means that it is essentially an educated guess based on previous observations or knowledge, which serves as a starting point for scientific investigation. Researchers propose hypotheses to explore and predict potential relationships between variables.

This characteristic of being tentative is crucial because it indicates that a hypothesis is subject to further testing and validation. Scientific methods often involve formulating a hypothesis, conducting experiments, and analyzing the results to either support or refute it. This iterative process helps in refining our understanding of the natural world.

In contrast, the other options describe concepts that are fundamentally different. The notion of a proven theory implies a level of certainty and acceptance after extensive testing and validation that goes beyond the exploratory nature of a hypothesis. An established law in scientific inquiry refers to universally accepted principles that describe consistent phenomena, rather than something that is still being tested. A comprehensive explanation of observations suggests a theory, which integrates a range of hypotheses that have been confirmed through extensive research, rather than the initial, testable statements that characterize a hypothesis.