Meaning & use
ballpark guess
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Meanings
nouncountableinformal
A rough estimate based on general knowledge rather than exact measurement.
Grammar: Countable: you can say a ballpark guess or several ballpark guesses.
Patterns
- a ballpark guess at something
- make a ballpark guess
- give someone a ballpark guess
Without the exact numbers, I can only make a ballpark guess at the cost.
Her ballpark guess was that about two hundred people would come.
Can you give me a ballpark guess for how long the repair will take?
verbtransitiveinformalAmerican
To estimate something roughly without exact information.
Grammar: Takes an object: ballpark the total. The verb ballpark is used mainly in American English.
Patterns
- ballpark something
- ballpark the figure
Let's ballpark the total before we ask for a real quote.
He ballparked the distance at around five miles.
Word forms
| plural | ballpark guesses |
|---|
Common combinations
- a ballpark figure
- The manager gave us a ballpark figure for next year's budget.
- a ballpark estimate
- That is only a ballpark estimate, so don't rely on it.
- just a ballpark guess
- It's just a ballpark guess, but I'd say forty minutes.
- make a ballpark guess
- Even a ballpark guess would help us plan.
Synonyms and how they differ
- rough estimate
- More neutral and slightly more formal; use it in writing when ballpark guess feels too casual.
- approximation
- Sounds technical or academic and suggests a calculated value, not a quick guess.
- guesstimate
- Informal like ballpark guess, but it stresses that the answer mixes guessing with estimating.
Opposites
Word family
- ballpark noun
- A baseball stadium; also used informally to mean a rough range, as in in the ballpark.
- ballpark figure noun
- A rough number or amount, very close in meaning to ballpark guess.
Commonly confused: ballpark guess or wild guess?
ballpark guess vs wild guess
A wild guess has almost no basis in facts, while a ballpark guess is based on general knowledge and is usually closer to the truth.
Practice
The builder couldn't give an exact price, so he offered a ______ of about $8,000.
Choose one answer.
A ballpark guess fits because the builder gives a rough but informed number. A wild guess would suggest he had no idea at all, and precise estimate and final offer both suggest exactness that the sentence denies.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ballpark guess”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.