Speculates

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To engage in the formation of theories regarding uncertain events without having definitive proof
2. To make educated guesses about future possibilities based on current knowledge or signs
3. To consider possible outcomes or ideas without conclusive evidence ; to buy or trade assets with the hope of financial gain from price changes

Etymology: "Speculates" is the third-person singular form of "speculate", so the history belongs to the verb itself. Its roots lie in Latin "specula", meaning a watchtower, the high vantage point from which a sentry scanned the horizon. From that watchtower sense came "speculor", "to watch, observe, examine, spy", and the physical act of looking out over a landscape is still visible in the word's core. The leap from watching to guessing happened because a watcher peers at what is not yet clear and tries to make out its shape. By the time the word reached English, its meaning had moved from observing things to reasoning about them, and then to forming opinions about what might happen. The verb is borrowed from Latin "speculātus", the past participle of "speculor", so English took the word directly rather than through French.

Synonyms: theorizes, hypothesizes, conjectures, guesses, ponders

Antonyms: certifies, knows, determines, proves, validates