as in hypothetical
existing only as an assumption or speculation
a speculative explanation of why this ancient pottery was found hundreds of miles from where it was made
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Recent Examples of speculative
In the absence of details about the timeframe or scope of the new files to be released, their contents, at this point, are purely speculative.
—
Danya Gainor, CNN Money, 7 Mar. 2026
Christopher Anderson, the Department of Justice lawyer representing the EPA, argued that while the agency does discount future effects in weighing regulations, that practice is not discriminatory and any link to resulting climate harms is speculative.
—Blanca Begert, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Not long before that passage of play, Liverpool did advance the ball to the edge of the Wolves box, but Milos Kerkez opted against crossing and instead the move fizzled out with Dominik Szoboszlai attempting a speculative shot from more than 30 yards out.
—Andy Jones, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Beneath the indexes, Cramer said some stocks traded Wednesday as if the war will wind down faster than expected, pointing to more speculative names.
—Paulina Likos, CNBC, 4 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for speculative
Danya Gainor, CNN Money, 7 Mar. 2026
Christopher Anderson, the Department of Justice lawyer representing the EPA, argued that while the agency does discount future effects in weighing regulations, that practice is not discriminatory and any link to resulting climate harms is speculative.
—Blanca Begert, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Not long before that passage of play, Liverpool did advance the ball to the edge of the Wolves box, but Milos Kerkez opted against crossing and instead the move fizzled out with Dominik Szoboszlai attempting a speculative shot from more than 30 yards out.
—Andy Jones, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Beneath the indexes, Cramer said some stocks traded Wednesday as if the war will wind down faster than expected, pointing to more speculative names.
—Paulina Likos, CNBC, 4 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for speculative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for speculative
Adjective
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Meanwhile, Beijing has been waging information warfare against Tokyo since Takaichi signaled her willingness to aid Taiwan in a hypothetical invasion.—
Timothy Nerozzi,
The Washington Examiner,
16 Mar. 2026
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For now, any scenarios involving tax relief remain hypothetical.—
Douglas Hanks
March 13,
Miami Herald,
13 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Perhaps, now that my theoretical love life was upon all of us, my mother was having second thoughts about the value of my happiness.—
Han Ong,
New Yorker,
15 Mar. 2026
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However, a new theoretical study suggests that the road to this promise is much longer than many researchers had hoped.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Projections of economic gains from major sporting events are typically optimistic, euphoric, chimerical or conjectural.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
19 June 2025
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That statistic is somewhat conjectural, since the vast majority of rapes in India are apparently not reported.—
Mark Jenkins,
Washington Post,
7 Nov. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Speculative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/speculative. Accessed 20 Mar. 2026.
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