speculative fiction
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of speculative fiction
Coined in 1947 by Robert A. Heinlein ( def. ) in his essay On the Writing of Speculative Fiction, in which he differentiates between science fiction stories that focus on fictional technologies and stories that focus on the societal impact of such technologies
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A quarter-century before the hit film, former bond salesman and budding author Michael Lewis wrote a provocative piece of speculative fiction: “How a Tokyo Earthquake Could Devastate Wall Street.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
For years, the simulation hypothesis was regarded as untestable, confined to the realms of philosophy and speculative fiction.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 10, 2025
Many speculative fiction writers say some version of this whenever people point out disturbing similarities in their shows and movies to current events.
From Salon ● May 7, 2025
“What’s the function of a galaxy?” the speculative fiction writer Ursula K. Le Guin once asked.
From Slate ● Feb. 7, 2025
And such a lineal-descendant project couldn't have lasted through forty generations, speculative fiction to the contrary—the later generations would have been too far removed in ideology and intent from their ancestors.
From Control Group by Aycock, Roger D.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
