speculation
Americannoun
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the contemplation or consideration of some subject.
to engage in speculation on humanity's ultimate destiny.
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a single instance or process of consideration.
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a conclusion or opinion reached by such contemplation.
These speculations are impossible to verify.
- Synonyms:
- hypothesis, theory, view, supposition
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conjectural consideration of a matter; conjecture or surmise.
a report based on speculation rather than facts.
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engagement in business transactions involving considerable risk but offering the chance of large gains, especially trading in commodities, stocks, etc., in the hope of profit from changes in the market price.
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a speculative commercial venture or undertaking.
noun
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the act or an instance of speculating
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a supposition, theory, or opinion arrived at through speculating
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investment involving high risk but also the possibility of high profits
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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antispeculationnoun
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nonspeculationnoun
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overspeculationnoun
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prespeculationnoun
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semispeculationnoun
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of speculation
1325–75; Middle English speculacioun < Late Latin speculātiōn- (stem of speculātiō ) exploration, observation. See speculate, -ion
Explanation
When you guess about how something is going to come out (or how it happened), that's speculation. You're making an educated guess. When people predict who will win a football game, an Oscar, or an election, it's speculation: people are looking at the facts and making their best guess. Just about anything you say about the future is speculation, because no one knows what will happen. The word is used in the stock market for such financial dealings as "buying on spec," a risky way to make money. Sometimes, this word means something close to meditation — pondering something deeply.
Vocabulary lists containing speculation
The Things They Carried
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American History II
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100 SAT words Beginning with "S"
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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:
Hospitality veteran Clemens Keller insists that Vienna's storied "heuriger" winemakers' taverns -- which face a hangover-inducing brew of real estate speculation, spiralling costs and climate change -- cannot rely on their illustrious past.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
Federico Chiesa insists he is only "thinking about Liverpool" amid continued speculation over his future.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Maresca did not elaborate on when Rodri might return though he did dismiss speculation around the Spaniard's future at the Etihad following reports in the past week linking him with a move to Real Madrid.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
“The results suggest Gen Z sees crypto less as a short-term speculation and more as part of a broader effort to gain financial autonomy,” says Cex.io in its note.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
This isn’t repeated as speculation or as part of the underwear invention, but as fact.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
Disraeli, who admired Lord Byron and cut a similarly romantic figure, began as a novelist whose financial speculations drove him nearly into disgrace.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
According to Page Six, the speculations about the romance caused a “feud” between Batula and Miller, who were particularly close in Season 10 of “Summer House.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
"For decades there has been speculations and different theories to explain these remarkable properties and one theory has been the existence of a critical point. Now we have found that such a point exists."
From Science Daily ● Mar. 29, 2026
It looks like Gavin and Stacey fans will never know what happened on that fishing trip after a star of the comedy put any reboot speculations to bed.
From BBC ● May 8, 2025
She was interrupted in the midst of these uneasy speculations by the sound of the telephone bell ringing in the other room.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
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.
