guess
/ɡɛs
/verb [with object]
1Estimate or conclude (something) without sufficient information to be sure of being correct: she guessed the child’s age at 14 or 15 [with clause]: he took her aside and I guessed that he was offering her a job [no object]: we can only guess at Alan’s motives...
- A note especially to ladies and gay men: when a guy guesses your age, always add four years to his estimate, because that's the age he thinks you really are.
- I wasn't sure who she directed the comment to but I was guessing it was Max.
- The informant laughed when he told her, so she guessed it must be someone important.
Synonyms
estimate, calculate, approximate, make a guess at, make an estimate of;
hypothesize, postulate, predict, speculate, conjecture, surmise, reckon, fathom;
evaluate, judge, gauge, determine, rate, appraise, weigh up, form an opinion of
informal guesstimate, size up
1.1Form a correct conclusion about (something) by guessing: [with clause]: she’s guessed where we’re going...
- We tend to assume that because we can guess the name of some very popular sites that the naming scheme works and makes sense.
- Instead of guessing the score, you recited your imaginary measurements!
- They are there instead of plying their trade on the streets expecting to meet, you've guessed it, a foreigner.
1.2 (I guess) informal Used to indicate that although one thinks or supposes something, it is without any great conviction or strength of feeling: [with clause]: I guess I’d better tell you everything...
- So I guess this is probably a good time to do an entry on the birthday celebrations.
- Overall, I guess the most interesting part of the film was the attending audience.
- History, I guess, will tell if our efforts prove enough or not for our World Cup chances.
Synonyms
suppose, think, believe, imagine, expect, assume, presume, judge, consider, feel, suspect, dare say, fancy, divine, deem, conjecture, surmise, conclude, hazard a guess, be of the opinion, be given to understand;
North American figure
informal reckon
noun
An estimate or conclusion formed by guessing: my guess is that within a year we will have a referendum...
- The trouble with this is that many of the available numbers are guesses described as estimates.
- To what extent was it based on estimates, guesses and interpretations, however well-founded?
- Without complete designs for these projects, cost estimates are only wild guesses.
Synonyms
hypothesis, theory, prediction, postulation, conjecture;
conclusion, belief, opinion, surmise, estimate, reckoning, judgement, supposition, assumption, speculation, notion, suspicion, impression, feeling
informal guesstimate
Phrases
anybody's (or anyone's) guess
keep someone guessing
Derivatives
guessable
/ adjective ...- The servers have not been maintained properly and the selection of passwords (many had default passwords or easily guessable passwords) was irresponsible and showed a complete lack of attention to security.
- The promised metaphysical delights turn out to be pretty guessable from the trailer, and they don't really do all that much with the idea once it's out in the open.
- The other is easily guessable from the cover design.
guesser
- There's a clue in the painting above as to my destination, correct guessers will receive the usual part-furnished bedsit in Tottenham Hale.
- In reality, of course, such people are just good guessers.
- In the event the first prize winner is also the closest with the tiebreaker, out of all the entries, then the runners up prize will go to the next closest guesser.
Origin
Middle English: origin uncertain; perhaps from Dutch gissen, and probably related to get.
Rhymes
- Neumann's formula
- Neumann's function
- Neumann's law
- Neumann's problem
- neumatic
- neume
- neumic
- Neupogen
- neur.
- neural
- neural arch
- neural canal
- neural cell adhesion molecule
- neural computer
- neural computing
- neural crest
- neuralgia
- neuralgiac
- neuralgic
- neuralgically
- neuralisation
- neuralization
- neuralized
- neuralizing
- neurally