Definitions for speculate
ˈspɛk yəˌleɪtspec·u·late

Princeton's WordNet(3.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. speculate, theorize, theorise, conjecture, hypothesize, hypothesise, hypothecate, suppose(verb)

   to believe especially on uncertain or tentative grounds

   "Scientists supposed that large dinosaurs lived in swamps"

2. speculate(verb)

   talk over conjecturally, or review in an idle or casual way and with an element of doubt or without sufficient reason to reach a conclusion

   "We were speculating whether the President had to resign after the scandal"

3. chew over, think over, meditate, ponder, excogitate, contemplate, muse, reflect, mull, mull over, ruminate, speculate(verb)

   reflect deeply on a subject

   "I mulled over the events of the afternoon"; "philosophers have speculated on the question of God for thousands of years"; "The scientist must stop to observe and start to excogitate"

4. speculate, job(verb)

   invest at a risk

   "I bought this house not because I want to live in it but to sell it later at a good price, so I am speculating"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. speculate(Verb)

   to think, meditate or reflect on a subject; to deliberate or cogitate

   Etymology: From speculatus, past participle of speculor, from specula, from specio

2. speculate(Verb)

   to make an inference based on inconclusive evidence; to surmise or conjecture

   Etymology: From speculatus, past participle of speculor, from specula, from specio

3. speculate(Verb)

   to make a risky trade in the hope of making a profit; to venture or gamble

   Etymology: From speculatus, past participle of speculor, from specula, from specio

Webster Dictionary(1.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Speculate(verb)

   to consider by turning a subject in the mind, and viewing it in its different aspects and relations; to meditate; to contemplate; to theorize; as, to speculate on questions in religion; to speculate on political events

   Etymology: [L. speculatus, p. p. of speculari to spy out, observe, fr. specula a lookout, fr. specere to look. See Spy.]

2. Speculate(verb)

   to view subjects from certain premises given or assumed, and infer conclusions respecting them a priori

   Etymology: [L. speculatus, p. p. of speculari to spy out, observe, fr. specula a lookout, fr. specere to look. See Spy.]

3. Speculate(verb)

   to purchase with the expectation of a contingent advance in value, and a consequent sale at a profit; -- often, in a somewhat depreciative sense, of unsound or hazardous transactions; as, to speculate in coffee, in sugar, or in bank stock

   Etymology: [L. speculatus, p. p. of speculari to spy out, observe, fr. specula a lookout, fr. specere to look. See Spy.]

4. Speculate(verb)

   to consider attentively; as, to speculate the nature of a thing

   Etymology: [L. speculatus, p. p. of speculari to spy out, observe, fr. specula a lookout, fr. specere to look. See Spy.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Speculate

   spek′ū-lāt, v.i. to look at or into with the mind: to consider: to theorise: to traffic for great profit.—ns. Speculā′tion, act of speculating: mental view: contemplation: theory: the buying goods, &c., to sell them at an advance, any more or less risky investment of money for the sake of unusually large profits; Spec′ulātist, a speculative philosopher.—adj. Spec′ūlātive, given to speculation or theory: ideal: pertaining to speculation in business, &c.—adv. Spec′ulātively.—ns. Spec′ulātiveness, the state of being speculative; Spec′ulātor, one who engages in mental speculations, or who practises speculation in trade or business of any kind.—adj. Spec′ūlātory, exercising speculation: adapted for spying or viewing.—n. Spec′ulātrix, a female speculator. [L. speculatus, pa.p. of speculāri—specula, a lookout—specĕre, to look.]

Anagrams for speculate »

1. peculates

How to pronounce speculate?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say speculate in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of speculate in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of speculate in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of speculate in a Sentence

1. Donald Trump:

   It is not concern and focus of mine, i'm a mother and a first lady, and I have much more important things to think about and to do. I know people like to speculate and media like to speculate about our marriage.

2. Comptroller Thomas Curry:

   If you have secure and reliable sources of funding and you have a capital base to absorb potential credit losses you don't have that type of volatility, i would only speculate that, you know, partnerships or other types of relationships with traditional banking organizations may make more sense from a strategic standpoint.

3. Chuck Grassley:

   I'm not going to speculate on what the President might do. But I can tell you Jeff Sessions has always been a friend and is still a friend.

4. Phillip Barden:

   Fossilized behavior is exceedingly rare, predation( the act of predator attacking prey) especially so, as paleontologists, we speculate about the function of ancient adaptations using available evidence, but to see an extinct predator caught in the act of capturing its prey is invaluable.

5. Kevin Harvick:

   We dont have that answer. I can tell you that it will be drastically different than what we have done before, i would hate to speculate on what the direction of it is going to be and what we are going to do because we dont know. That is good for everyone watching. We have more questions with zero answers, actually.

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