speculative Hear it!

speculative Definition

specu·la·tive (spek′yə lāt′iv, -lə tiv)

adjective

  1. of, characterized by, or having the nature of, speculation or meditation, conjecture, etc.
  2. theoretical, not practical
  3. of or characterized by financial speculation
  4. uncertain; risky
  5. indulging in or fond of speculation

Etymology: ME speculatif < MFr < LL speculativus

speculative Related Forms
spec′u·la′·tively adverb
speculative Synonyms

speculative

modif.

  1. Thoughtful

    contemplative, meditative, pensive; see thoughtful 1.

  2. Involving risk

    unsafe, insecure, risky; see dangerous 1, uncertain 2.

    Antonyms safe*, certain, sure.

speculative Usage Examples

Preposition: in

  • nature: Some of what is discussed below, it has to be said, must still be accounted speculative in nature.

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • make: There is no clarity as to the proportion between registered voters and people eligible for registration, which makes any judgment speculative.

Modifies a noun

  • cvs: In addition, we'd be happy to receive speculative CVs at any time.
  • lob: But the lead lasted just five minutes, as Paul Evans scored with a speculative long range lob over the back pedaling Dean Williams.
  • bubble: In either isn't the end-product a huge speculative bubble bound to burst?
  • fiction: For the present, its wider implications belong to speculative fiction.
  • Freemasonry: Change came when Speculative Freemasonry was exported to the continent.
  • builder: The rented houses have been provided mostly by speculative builders.

Modifying Another Word

  • purely: I had a curious instant of purely speculative thought.
  • wildly: A spokesman in the White House press office said they would not comment on " wildly speculative rumors.
  • overly: When Greenblatt discusses the sources of Shakespeare's inspiration, they are often stunningly banal and overly speculative.
  • highly: The mineral deposits vary considerably in extent which made lead mining a highly speculative venture.
  • entirely: Good news could come between 9th and 12th tho when what has been viewed as entirely speculative starts to ' deliver the goods ' .
  • inevitably: Without specifying the nature of the platform, costs are inevitably speculative.

Used with adjective complement

  • remain: Most of their projects, like the Carbon Tower, remain speculative.
  • become: From here on, what would happen next becomes even more speculative.
  • consider: There hasn't been one for GM crops, so risk assessment has to consider speculative " what if?
  • seem: An investment may, in isolation, seem highly speculative.
  • regard: However, these observations must be regarded as speculative.
  • receive: There are no vacancies currently available but we're always happy to receive speculative CVs.