speculate
Americanverb (used without object)
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speculates,
present (3rd person singular)
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speculated,
past participle, past
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speculating
present participle
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to engage in thought or reflection; meditate (often followed by on, upon, or a clause).
-
to indulge in conjectural thought.
- Synonyms:
- theorize, suppose, surmise, guess, conjecture
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to engage in any business transaction involving considerable risk or the chance of large gains, especially to buy and sell commodities, stocks, etc., in the expectation of a quick or very large profit.
verb
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(when tr, takes a clause as object) to conjecture without knowing the complete facts
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(intr) to buy or sell securities, property, etc, in the hope of deriving capital gains
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(intr) to risk loss for the possibility of considerable gain
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(intr) rugby to make an emergency forward kick of the ball without taking any particular aim
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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overspeculateverb (used without object)
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prespeculateverb (used without object)
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unspeculatingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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speculatesimple
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speculatessimple
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have speculatedperfect
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has speculatedperfect
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am speculatingprogressive
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are speculatingprogressive
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is speculatingprogressive
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have been speculatingperfect progressive
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has been speculatingperfect progressive
Past
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speculatedsimple
-
had speculatedperfect
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was speculatingprogressive
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were speculatingprogressive
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had been speculatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of speculate
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin speculātus “watched over,” past participle of speculārī “to watch over, explore, reconnoiter,” verb derivative of specula “watchtower,” noun derivative of specere “to look, regard, see”
Explanation
When you speculate, you use what you know to make a prediction about an outcome, like when you speculate that the injury of two key players will prevent your favorite team from going far in the playoffs this year. The verb speculate has a specialized meaning in the world of finance — it means to take a financial risk in the hopes of monetary gain. For example, a business owner may speculate that a brand-new kind of frozen yogurt will be really popular, so she buys a huge order of it for her ice cream store. Someone who speculates goes looking for the next big thing, as seen in the word's Latin origin, speculatus, meaning "to spy out, examine."
Vocabulary lists containing speculate
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Common Senses: Spec, Spect, Spic ("Look")
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The Secret Life of Bees
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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:
“I speculate he saw that note or somehow figured out she was going to institutionalize him, but I have no idea.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
But Streeting said Monday he did not "want to speculate at this stage of the investigation", when asked whether it could be linked to a hostile state.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
Beyond that boundary, we are left to infer and speculate.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026
Prime Minister Andy Burnham urged the public “not to speculate while the authorities establish the full facts.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
It was understandable that Wagner might want to speculate about the art world of the future, one that would encompass within it all the arts, centred on human dramas of love, death and destiny.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
"Our current findings suggest that in stress-associated psychiatric disorders such as depression, the CRH system in OPCs may play a greater role than previously known," Deussing speculates.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026
News coverage speculates about a "new tone" from the president.
From BBC ● Apr. 27, 2026
A raid to seize the enriched uranium, in what Kavanagh speculates is an attempt to “embarrass” Iran into submission, would face a slew of problems.
From Salon ● Apr. 3, 2026
Perhaps, Mero speculates, someone will change the lock combination, knocking her out of her own creation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2026
Sleight speculates that Ruess inscribed this Nemo not long after departing Davis Gulch.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
Shortly after Muniz’s post, Price posted an Instagram story with a message that some followers speculated may be a response to the actor’s admission.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
Investors and banking industry executives have privately speculated the bank could be poised to acquire a smaller lender.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
Following the announcement, some viewers speculated the show could be acquired by another UK broadcaster, but Bailey suggested the show's creators may prefer to go it alone.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Morgan Stanley’s Erik Woodring speculated in a July note that Apple could enact a $200 price increase across the entire iPhone 18 lineup.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026
“I wonder if Lorace will be uneasy!” she speculated, as she seated herself at table.
From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin
Not to be outdone, Mr. Hinton has been speculating for a couple of years about the prospect for total human extinction at the hands of AI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
Wall Street had been speculating whether Meta would begin leasing out its data-center capacity as a way of monetizing its AI infrastructure in a highly profitable manner.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
Viewers found this endearing, speculating that the robot was “bashful” or suffering from social anxiety.
From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2026
Richard Wilcock, Rail Magazine industry editor, said it was hard to know the cause without speculating, but photographs appeared to show "clearly a buckled track".
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
They discussed the metallurgists’ progress, and Thyon Nero’s, speculating who would breach the metal hulls first.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
