as in to derive
to form an opinion or reach a conclusion through reasoning and information
we can extrapolate from past economic recessions the probable course of the current one
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of extrapolate
The Conservancy then takes those estimates and extrapolates them across the whole island.
—
Kris Millgate, Outdoor Life, 6 Feb. 2026
Then again, that slightly generic quality never impinges on the film’s characterizations, and allows viewers to extrapolate the finer points of this story to the plights of so many other refugees, from Syria and elsewhere.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 27 Jan. 2026
Big data models learn by copying existing actions—how to fold clothes, write a dissertation, or create a video of a pig hoverboarding through space—by parsing previous examples and extrapolating similar behavior.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 27 Jan. 2026
From data on high radiation exposures, scientists extrapolate, or predict, what might happen if people are exposed to lower levels of radiation.
—Katy Huff, Scientific American, 23 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for extrapolate
Kris Millgate, Outdoor Life, 6 Feb. 2026
Then again, that slightly generic quality never impinges on the film’s characterizations, and allows viewers to extrapolate the finer points of this story to the plights of so many other refugees, from Syria and elsewhere.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 27 Jan. 2026
Big data models learn by copying existing actions—how to fold clothes, write a dissertation, or create a video of a pig hoverboarding through space—by parsing previous examples and extrapolating similar behavior.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 27 Jan. 2026
From data on high radiation exposures, scientists extrapolate, or predict, what might happen if people are exposed to lower levels of radiation.
—Katy Huff, Scientific American, 23 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for extrapolate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extrapolate
Verb
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Rick Baker Much of modern Hollywood makeup derives from techniques created by Rick Baker, who innovated the field of special effects makeup.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 Mar. 2026
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Weeks later, eight individuals and two entities, including North Korean bankers and institutions, were sanctioned for laundering funds derived from cybercrime and IT worker fraud schemes.—
Lisa Cavazuti,
NBC news,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The resulting insights are intended to help scientists understand how the ocean is changing and what those changes mean for the planet.—
Ashley Mackin Solomon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Mar. 2026
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Royal Canadian Mounted Police Chief Superintendent Chris Leather called it a national security incident and said the national police force is working with Toronto police to understand the motive.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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David Nichols, a neuroscientist who is an expert on psychedelics, told me about a woman with alcohol-use disorder who realized during a psilocybin trip that her drinking was harming her children and decided to stop.—
Clayton Dalton,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
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But deciding how that system should evolve, how data should flow, how governance must adapt, and how compliance risk is mitigated requires human reasoning.—
Milan Shetti,
Fortune,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Large language models are extraordinarily good at inferring context clues—in this case, the user’s name, professional background, and likely objections—and tailoring output accordingly.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
3 Mar. 2026
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However, its presence can be inferred due to its gravitational effects on regular matter because dark matter is the glue that holds the universe together.—
Jacopo Prisco,
CNN Money,
3 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Extrapolate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extrapolate. Accessed 17 Mar. 2026.
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