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Synonyms

guesstimate

American  
[ges-tuh-mayt, ges-tuh-mit, -mayt] / ˈgɛs təˌmeɪt, ˈgɛs tə mɪt, -ˌmeɪt /
Or guestimate

verb (used with object)

guesstimated, guesstimating
  1. to estimate without substantial basis in facts or statistics.


noun

  1. an estimate arrived at by guesswork.

guesstimate British  

noun

  1. an estimate calculated mainly or only by guesswork

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to form a guesstimate of

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of guesstimate

1935–40, blend of guess and estimate

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.

See Examples For:

Our leading hypothesis is that phages use CtrA to guesstimate when there will be enough bacteria nearby sporting pili and flagella that they can readily infect.

From Salon ● Sep. 21, 2022

“It was a guesstimate, a very rough guesstimate,” Oathes says.

From Slate ● Sep. 13, 2022

One early guesstimate located the heliopause as close as Jupiter.

From Scientific American ● Jun. 16, 2022

Brennan: Like even that number you cited — the 75% number — I don’t know that it’s necessarily fair to extrapolate from one anonymous player’s memory or guesstimate.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2022

The libraries closed March 13, and as far as I know there has been no announcement of a guesstimate of the opening of the buildings.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 17, 2020

Earlier this year, Forbes guesstimated Diddy was the richest man in hip-hop, with a net worth around $820 million.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2017

Prince Graeme claims Australian authorities "guesstimated" how much the principality had earned from tourism.

From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2017

The few studies that have been done rely on lots of potentially unreliable numbers—the guesstimated cost to consumers of using ATMs, for example.

From Slate ● Mar. 19, 2012

He guesstimated that the installation would set him back about $2,400.

From BusinessWeek ● Dec. 29, 2010

Last week the Board's index reported a six-point drop for April, and May production was guesstimated at 90, June still lower.

From Time Magazine Archive

There’s nothing inherently wrong with guesstimating economic opportunities, but the more prominent, inflated, or specific they are, the worse of a sign it can be.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

But not everyone completes it, she said: "Oftentimes, we have to still do some guesstimating."

From Salon ● May 15, 2022

But I'm not great at guesstimating time right now because it's not real.

From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2021

But for now, Kaiser is guesstimating their numbers have held above 2 million.

From Slate ● Jan. 6, 2020

The methods for guesstimating carbohydrate intake also seemed imprecise, Mr. Costik found, and the process generated a lot of wasted data.

From New York Times ● Feb. 22, 2016

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