SPECULATES Synonyms: 34 Similar and Opposite Words

speculates

verb

present tense third-person singular of speculate

as in assumes

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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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of speculates The Newsom administration is coming under fire for paying $180 million to a private investment firm that speculates on water in exchange for a relatively small amount of additional water for Sacramento River salmon. — Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026 Her exit comes as the industry speculates wildly about the fate of other division leaders across both companies. — Matt Donnelly, Variety, 29 Sep. 2026 The Instagram caption speculates the albino shark was somewhere between eight and nine feet long. — David Hookstead Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Sep. 2026 The report’s conclusion speculates that keeping things private, even innocuous ones, signals secretiveness. — Neil J. Rubenking, PC Magazine, 10 Sep. 2026 Neiman speculates that polyploidy and the snail’s unusual reproductive strategies are related. — Carrie Arnold contributing, Quanta Magazine, 2 Sep. 2026 Berman speculates that Meta will next settle the school districts case, which stemmed from some 1,200 districts across the country accusing the Facebook parent and other social media companies of spreading intentionally addictive features. — Jonathan Vanian, CNBC, 30 Aug. 2026 The source speculates that Meghan may keep a relatively low profile as the family settles back into life in Britain. — Simon Perry, PEOPLE, 20 Aug. 2026 At the same time, Caillier speculates that the rugs are strong enough to stand on their own. — Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 11 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for speculates

Verb

Thus, ethical communication assumes the receiver has a right to accurate information to make informed decisions (whether voting, buying a product, or navigating a relationship).

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 12 Nov. 2026
Many songs here invert the notion of a ghost in the machine; Shy assumes the role of the femmebot on the fritz, while the productions—overseen by Karma Kid and Casey MQ—are like the contents of a fertile petri dish.

— Walden Green, Pitchfork, 11 Nov. 2026

Definition of assumes

Verb

Logan Wright, the author of Broken China, guesses that growth is now running at no more than 1% — and may even be zero.

— Andy Browne, semafor.com, 11 Aug. 2026
The system consists of a predictive algorithm that guesses how a robot is broken, along with robotic manipulators that actually take the broken robot apart.

— Kohava Mendelsohn, IEEE Spectrum, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of guesses

Verb

The local rabble-rouser thinks people will be pleasantly surprised, And not just those who lived through that insane time.

— Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 11 Nov. 2026
Blank thinks many California transplants were primarily motivated by housing costs, with politics being secondary.

— Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 10 Nov. 2026

Definition of thinks

Verb

In David’s 1996 novel Absolute Power, an American president presumes himself to be above the rule of law and seeks to force his underlings to commit criminal acts that will benefit him.

— David Baldacci, Vanity Fair, 3 Nov. 2026
For example, the law presumes that coordination is taking place if a candidate’s family member is running an independent expenditure committee supporting that same candidate.

— David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of presumes

Verb

Bacon’s own utopian fantasy The New Atlantis imagines a brave technocratic future, and seemingly predicts everything from submarines to genetic modification and the internet.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026
Rooms With the Hanoi Opera House just steps away, each of Capella Hanoi's 47 rooms and suites imagines the private quarters of an opera legend.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of imagines

Verb

Peter Cho, chief marketing officer of the Sleep Spa, surmises that their mattresses first became a status symbol in 1952, when the company became the official purveyor to the royal court by King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden.

— Jaklin Romine Oct. 15, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
Bastian’s wife surmises that Johann must be a relative, and he is invited to eat.

— Alex Ross, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of surmises

Verb

But Songlian soon suspects that the real danger lies with the seemingly kindly but secretly conniving Second Mistress (Cao Cuifen).

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2026
But Pessiglione suspects that psychological factors, such as motivations and beliefs, also play a key role.

— Cody Cottier, Scientific American, 4 Nov. 2026