as in guessing
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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Recent Examples of speculating
After a vague, mid-February social media post got fans speculating if Curtis had accidentally spilled the beans that the upcoming fifth season of the culinary dramedy would be its last, the Emmy winner seems to be doubling down on her comments.
—
Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Mar. 2026
Viewers were speculating that another important death from the books, that of Marina Thompson (Ruby Barker), could be a possibility from the shots of Benedict’s black clothing.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 26 Feb. 2026
Shell building is her way of considering the question, testing it, and speculating.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Valerie Krystine Muniz, who identified herself on social media as Addi’s aunt and the sister of her father, urged people to stop speculating as the family grieves.
—Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 17 Feb. 2026
As much as the cap growth era has taken some of the sting out of targeting teams with distressed assets as a means of both improving your NHL lineup while simultaneously adding future value, there’s still utility to speculating in struggling veteran players on inefficient or inconvenient contracts.
—Harman Dayal, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2026
With the penultimate hour now streaming, only one episode remains, and, without any renewal news to say otherwise, fans are speculating this could be the end of the saga from creator Meaghan Oppenheimer.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 11 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, some of those astronomers began speculating that, like our planet and its inhabitants, the very stars were subject to change, forming and growing and eventually dying.
—Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Podcasters who get to spend at least five more months speculating about Antetokounmpo trades that might never happen.
—Mike Finger, San Antonio Express-News, 5 Feb. 2026
Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Mar. 2026
Viewers were speculating that another important death from the books, that of Marina Thompson (Ruby Barker), could be a possibility from the shots of Benedict’s black clothing.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 26 Feb. 2026
Shell building is her way of considering the question, testing it, and speculating.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Valerie Krystine Muniz, who identified herself on social media as Addi’s aunt and the sister of her father, urged people to stop speculating as the family grieves.
—Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 17 Feb. 2026
As much as the cap growth era has taken some of the sting out of targeting teams with distressed assets as a means of both improving your NHL lineup while simultaneously adding future value, there’s still utility to speculating in struggling veteran players on inefficient or inconvenient contracts.
—Harman Dayal, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2026
With the penultimate hour now streaming, only one episode remains, and, without any renewal news to say otherwise, fans are speculating this could be the end of the saga from creator Meaghan Oppenheimer.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 11 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, some of those astronomers began speculating that, like our planet and its inhabitants, the very stars were subject to change, forming and growing and eventually dying.
—Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Podcasters who get to spend at least five more months speculating about Antetokounmpo trades that might never happen.
—Mike Finger, San Antonio Express-News, 5 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for speculating
Verb
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Against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Burnley, and Leeds United, Fernandez and Cole Palmer have shared responsibilities across the No 10 and left wing positions, rotating in-game to keep opponents guessing.—
Cerys Jones,
New York Times,
28 Feb. 2026
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Everyone—from bankers to studio chiefs—will keep guessing what counts as market power when the biggest player in streaming never had to test its limits in court.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
28 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In a market as economically diverse as Miami, this threshold is worth checking before assuming drug costs are fixed.—
Allison Palmer
March 3,
Miami Herald,
3 Mar. 2026
-
Zillow’s affordability target price is based on house payments — excluding taxes and insurance and assuming a 20% down payment — that equal 30% of the local median income.—
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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That’s partly because girls are less frequently diagnosed with ADHD than boys are, so many adult women live their whole life with the disorder without ever suspecting it.—
Yasmin Tayag,
The Atlantic,
25 Feb. 2026
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Later, Zapata had her killed, suspecting her of being the mole.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Even supposing the pledges in the 1990s documents amounted to a crime, the legal deadline for bringing mortgage fraud charges has expired.—
Aysha Bagchi,
USA Today,
8 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Intelligent systems should provoke thinking rather than replace it.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
2 Mar. 2026
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Pat Williams, then the general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers, was thinking like a league lifer.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
1 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Speculating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/speculating. Accessed 6 Mar. 2026.
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