Speculating

1 definition found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Speculate \Spec"u*late\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Speculated}; p.
     pr. & vb. n. {Speculating}.] [L. speculatus, p. p. of
     speculari to spy out, observe, fr. specula a lookout, fr.
     specere to look. See {Spy}.]
     1. To consider by turning a subject in the mind, and viewing
        it in its different aspects and relations; to meditate; to


        contemplate; to theorize; as, to speculate on questions in
        religion; to speculate on political events.
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              It is remarkable that persons who speculate the most
              boldly often conform with the most pefect quietude
              to the external regulations of society. --Hawthorne.
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     2. (Philos.) To view subjects from certain premises given or
        assumed, and infer conclusions respecting them a priori.
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     3. (Com.) To purchase with the expectation of a contingent
        advance in value, and a consequent sale at a profit; --
        often, in a somewhat depreciative sense, of unsound or
        hazardous transactions; as, to speculate in coffee, in
        sugar, or in bank stock.
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