Meaning & use
educated guess
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Meaning
nouncountable
An estimate or prediction that is probably right because it is based on knowledge or experience, though not certain.
Grammar: Countable; usually with make, take, or be: it's an educated guess.
Patterns
- make an educated guess
- an educated guess about something
I'd say about two hundred people came, but that's just an educated guess.
The mechanic made an educated guess about what was wrong with the engine.
Based on the footprints, we made an educated guess that a fox had passed.
Word forms
| plural | educated guesses |
|---|
Common combinations
- make an educated guess
- Scientists make an educated guess before running the test.
- take an educated guess
- Let me take an educated guess at your age.
- just an educated guess
- This is just an educated guess, so don't quote me.
- a fairly good educated guess
- It was a fairly good educated guess and it turned out right.
- my best educated guess
- My best educated guess is that rain will come tonight.
Synonyms and how they differ
- estimate
- Estimate often involves numbers and calculation, while educated guess can be about any unknown.
- hunch
- A hunch is a feeling with no real evidence, whereas an educated guess uses knowledge.
- hypothesis
- A hypothesis is a formal idea to be tested in science, which is more structured than an educated guess.
- inference
- An inference is a conclusion drawn by reasoning from clues, a more logical process than guessing.
Opposites
Word family
- guess noun
- an answer given without knowing
- guess verb
- to give an answer without knowing
- guesstimate noun
- an informal rough estimate
- guesswork noun
- the process of guessing
- educated adjective
- based on knowledge, or well taught
Commonly confused: educated guess or educated guess vs. wild guess?
educated guess vs educated guess vs. wild guess
A wild guess is made with no information at all, while an educated guess draws on what you know.
Practice
The vet looked at the dog's teeth and made an ___ about its age.
Choose one answer.
An educated guess is an estimate based on knowledge. A vet cannot be certain, so informed certainty is wrong, and blind chance ignores her expertise.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “educated guess”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.