as in to guess
to form an opinion from little or no evidence
I speculate that someone has been using this cabin as a trysting place
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Recent Examples of speculate
The idea is to map out the next fifteen years and speculate what will happen with AI in each respective year.
—
Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
Researchers speculate red light might benefit sleep by increasing melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate your sleep-wake cycle.5
In the morning: Red light therapy in the morning may improve mental performance.
—Sherri Gordon, Health, 3 June 2025
Still, some attendees speculated that the fear of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid — which has been happening with increasing regularity at Latino gatherings — may have kept some people away from the festival.
—Sandra Gonzales, Mercury News, 2 June 2025
Gatwa's exit, long speculated, now confirms him as the second-shortest-serving Doctor, following Eccleston's single-season run.
—Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for speculate
Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
Researchers speculate red light might benefit sleep by increasing melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate your sleep-wake cycle.5
In the morning: Red light therapy in the morning may improve mental performance.
—Sherri Gordon, Health, 3 June 2025
Still, some attendees speculated that the fear of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid — which has been happening with increasing regularity at Latino gatherings — may have kept some people away from the festival.
—Sandra Gonzales, Mercury News, 2 June 2025
Gatwa's exit, long speculated, now confirms him as the second-shortest-serving Doctor, following Eccleston's single-season run.
—Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for speculate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for speculate
Verb
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The wild speculation quickly unfurled, with fans guessing that Gallagher may have been hinting at warm-up gigs or additional dates.—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
9 June 2025
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That hasn't stopped fans from speculating, of course, with some even guessing his character might be from another part of Marvel's multiverse and could be a variant of T'Challa's father T'Chaka, or perhaps even T'Challa himself.—
Michileen Martin,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 June 2025
Verb
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Sponsors may assume their site partners are ready, only to discover costly delays during study startup.—
Sonali Bloom,
Forbes.com,
10 June 2025
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For present purposes, the Court can assume (as seems likely) that Congress intended to preclude the President (or any subordinate officials acting at his direction) from directing, supervising, or controlling the Corporation.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
8 June 2025
Verb
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What that era taught me was to just trust myself, and trust that everything is going to work out the way it’s supposed to, and trust that relationships are put into your life for a reason.—
Angie Martoccio,
Rolling Stone,
12 June 2025
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The authors speculate that young, curious dogs scavenge and eat items they are not supposed to, leading to unpleasant accidents.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 June 2025
Verb
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Since Friday, the city and its suburbs have seen federal officers from various agencies face off against protesters who have unsuccessfully tried to stop them from conducting workplace raids or transport people suspected of being in this country illegally to detention facilities.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2025
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Kenneth Roth, the man suspected in her slaying as well as several other women’s murders, died of COVID-19 in prison in 2020.—
Stephanie Warsmith,
USA Today,
8 June 2025
Verb
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What anybody thinks about you is none of your business.—
Daniela Avila,
People.com,
13 June 2025
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It was then put to Tuchel that the show’s host Adrian Durham has friends who think England would be better off without Bellingham in the team, referring to that domineering personality.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
13 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Speculate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/speculate. Accessed 16 Jun. 2025.
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