speculation

C1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˌspek.jəˈlæɪ.ʃən/ UK /ˌspɛk.jəˈleɪ.ʃən/ See IPA manual

noun Freq #9805

Meanings

1

noun
An opinion or guess formed without firm evidence.

There has been endless speculation about who will win the election.
2

noun
Risky buying or investing done in the hope of large profit.

The sudden rise in prices was driven by wild speculation.
3

noun
Deep thinking or reflection on a subject.

His essay is full of speculation about the meaning of life.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · an opinion or guess formed... conjecture

2 noun · risky buying or investing... venture

3 noun · deep thinking or reflection... meditation

Word family

Forms speculations

Derived forms antispeculationmisspeculationnonspeculationoverspeculationprespeculation

Etymology

Etymology tree Middle English speculation English speculation From Middle English speculacioun, speculation, from Old French speculation (compare French spéculation), from Late Latin speculātiō, speculātiōnem, from Latin speculor. Morphologically speculate + -ion.

speculacioun Middle English speculation Old French speculātiō la-lat speculor Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# speculation

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ˌspek.jəˈlæɪ.ʃən
**IPA (UK):** ˌspɛk.jəˈleɪ.ʃən
**Frequency rank:** 9805

## Meanings
1. An opinion or guess formed without firm evidence.
2. Risky buying or investing done in the hope of large profit.
3. Deep thinking or reflection on a subject.

## Examples
- There has been endless speculation about who will win the election.
- The sudden rise in prices was driven by wild speculation.
- His essay is full of speculation about the meaning of life.

## Derived Forms
- antispeculation
- misspeculation
- nonspeculation
- overspeculation
- prespeculation

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: speculacioun
- Root: speculation
- Root: speculātiō
- Root: speculor

## Etymology
Etymology tree Middle English speculation English speculation From Middle English speculacioun, speculation, from Old French speculation (compare French spéculation), from Late Latin speculātiō, speculātiōnem, from Latin speculor. Morphologically speculate + -ion.

## AI Etymology
Speculation: The etymological chain runs Middle English speculation -> English speculation. From Middle English speculacioun, speculation, from Old French speculation (compare French spéculation), from Late Latin speculātiō, speculātiōnem, from Latin speculor. Morphologically speculate + -ion. Important historical forms include Middle English speculacioun, Old French speculation, Late Latin speculātiō, and Latin speculor. In present-day use, it can mean a opinion or guess formed without firm evidence, or risky buying or investing done in the hope of large profit.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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