Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.58 in modern English

Syllables
when y-ou -hear hoof-beat-s, -think of hors-es, not ze-bras
IPA
86
Scrabble Score
42
Letters
8
Syllables
16
Unique Chars

Meaning

proverb

When diagnosing a patient's symptoms, common ailments should be considered as more probable than rare ones.

Informal

Etymology

Coined by American medical researcher Theodore Woodward.

Usage

Inflected Forms

when you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras (alternative) when you hear hoofbeats, look for horses, not zebras (alternative)

Phrases

Occam's razor

Frequently Paired Words

Occam's razor

Synonyms

horses, not zebras

Questions

What does when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras mean?
When diagnosing a patient's symptoms, common ailments should be considered as more probable than rare ones.
Where does when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras come from?
Coined by American medical researcher Theodore Woodward.

How to pronounce when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras

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