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
The British press and social media users, unsurprisingly, immediately went into a frenzy speculating over why his departure was so swift.
—
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 1 Apr. 2026
That’s why, when King Charles announced his cancer diagnosis, speculating about his parents possibly also having had cancer started swirling.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 30 Mar. 2026
Fans begin speculating what led to their divorce.
—Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2026
Many top CEOs avoided interviews outside of the main stage for fear of speculating on the war and politics.
—Jordan Blum, Fortune, 28 Mar. 2026
Meanwhile, others are speculating whether SpaceX might combine the Starlink satellite design with the orbiting data center satellites at some point.
—Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 26 Mar. 2026
Some important details that United failed to disclose, including the price, have social media users speculating how this new seating perk will work.
—Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 26 Mar. 2026
By the time the services let out, volunteers were speculating that the agents had more or less left town.
—Daniel Brook, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
This led to a considerable amount of commentary speculating that Hispanic voters, historically more supportive of Democrats, might continue shifting toward the GOP.
—Gary M. Segura, The Conversation, 23 Mar. 2026
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 1 Apr. 2026
That’s why, when King Charles announced his cancer diagnosis, speculating about his parents possibly also having had cancer started swirling.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 30 Mar. 2026
Fans begin speculating what led to their divorce.
—Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2026
Many top CEOs avoided interviews outside of the main stage for fear of speculating on the war and politics.
—Jordan Blum, Fortune, 28 Mar. 2026
Meanwhile, others are speculating whether SpaceX might combine the Starlink satellite design with the orbiting data center satellites at some point.
—Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 26 Mar. 2026
Some important details that United failed to disclose, including the price, have social media users speculating how this new seating perk will work.
—Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 26 Mar. 2026
By the time the services let out, volunteers were speculating that the agents had more or less left town.
—Daniel Brook, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
This led to a considerable amount of commentary speculating that Hispanic voters, historically more supportive of Democrats, might continue shifting toward the GOP.
—Gary M. Segura, The Conversation, 23 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for speculating
Verb
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The playful breed-guessing challenge has captivated dog lovers, highlighting how diverse mixed-breed dogs can be—and how much personality can hint at ancestry.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Apr. 2026
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There is a famous idea that large groups can be good at guessing simple things, like — like the weight of a bull.—
Gary Shapiro,
Fortune,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The researchers suggest that future batteries may need to account for this dynamic behavior rather than assuming a stable internal structure.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
31 Mar. 2026
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Alfredo Delgadillo has been promoted to CEO & President, Universal Music Latin Entertainment, assuming oversight of Universal Music Latino in the United States, while continuing to lead Universal Music Mexico and the Regional Mexican label Fono.—
Jem Aswad,
Variety,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Surely seventh graders are capable of understanding that people need to get along with one another, rather than living in a constant state of alarm, suspecting that others mean us harm.—
Judith Martin,
Dallas Morning News,
30 Mar. 2026
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Surely seventh-graders are capable of understanding that people need to get along with one another, rather than living in a constant state of alarm, suspecting that others mean us harm.—
Judith Martin,
Sun Sentinel,
30 Mar. 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
-
Focus on the craft in front of you without thinking of its hypothetical audience.—
Tarot.com,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Mar. 2026
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But as these researchers are the first to admit, the difficulty of defining intelligence is as old as the study of thinking itself—and has plagued artificial intelligence as a field from its very earliest days.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Speculating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/speculating. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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