different between speculation vs speculate

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French speculation (compare French spéculation), from Late Latin specul?ti?, specul?ti?nem, from Latin speculor.Morphologically speculate +? -ion

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?sp?kj??le???n/
• Rhymes: -e???n
• Hyphenation: spec?u?la?tion

Noun

speculation (countable and uncountable, plural speculations)

1. The process of thinking or meditating on a subject.
   • 2012, Caroline Davies, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge announce they are expecting first baby (in The Guardian, 3 December 2012)[1]

     The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have ended months of intense speculation by announcing they are expecting their first child, but were forced to share their news earlier than hoped because of the Duchess's admission to hospital on Monday.

2. (philosophy) The act or process of reasoning a priori from premises given or assumed.
3. A conclusion to which the mind comes by speculating; mere theory; notion; conjecture.
4. (business, finance) An investment involving higher-than-normal risk in order to obtain a higher-than-normal return.
5. The act or practice of buying land, goods, shares, etc., in expectation of selling at a higher price, or of selling with the expectation of repurchasing at a lower price; a trading on anticipated fluctuations in price, as distinguished from trading in which the profit expected is the difference between the retail and wholesale prices, or the difference of price in different markets.
   • 1776, Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations

     Sudden fortunes, indeed, are sometimes made in such places, by what is called the trade of speculation.

   • 1883, Francis Amasa Walker, Political Economy

     Speculation, while confined within moderate limits, is the agent for equalizing supply and demand, and rendering the fluctuations of price less sudden and abrupt than they would otherwise be.

6. Examination by the eye; view.
7. (obsolete) Power of sight.
8. A card game in which the players buy from one another trumps or whole hands, upon a chance of getting the highest trump dealt, which entitles the holder to the pool of stakes.
9. (programming) The process of anticipating which branch of code will be chosen and executing it in advance.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:supposition

Derived terms

• "on speculation" (on spec) Creating a work with the hope of selling it, as opposed to creating a work "on commission" for hire.

Translations

Anagrams

• peculations, placentious, spinoculate

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin specul?tus, past participle of speculor (“look out”), from specula (“watchtower”), from speci? (“look at”)

Verb

speculate (third-person singular simple present speculates, present participle speculating, simple past and past participle speculated)

1. (obsolete, intransitive) To think, meditate or reflect on a subject; to consider, to deliberate or cogitate.

   • It is remarkable that persons who speculate the most boldly often conform with the most perfect quietude to the external regulations of society.

2. (intransitive) To make an inference based on inconclusive evidence; to surmise or conjecture.
3. (intransitive, business, finance) To make a risky trade in the hope of making a profit; to venture or gamble.
4. (intransitive, programming) To anticipate which branch of code will be chosen and execute it in advance.

Related terms

• species
• spectacle
• spectacular
• speculation
• speculative
• speculator

Translations

Further reading

• speculate in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• speculate in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• peculates

Italian

Verb

speculate

1. second-person plural present indicative of speculare
2. second-person plural imperative of speculare
3. feminine plural of speculato

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /spe.ku?la?.te/, [s?p?k????ä?t??]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /spe.ku?la.te/, [sp?ku?l??t??]

Participle

specul?te

1. vocative masculine singular of specul?tus