Speculative (Adjective)
Meaning 1
Not financially safe or secure; "a bad investment"; "high risk investments"; "anything that promises to pay too much can't help being risky"; "speculative business enterprises".
Classification
All adjective clusters.
Examples
- Investing in a small startup with no proven track record is considered a speculative move.
- He avoided making speculative trades, instead focusing on long-term, stable investments.
- The real estate agent warned potential buyers that investing in this particular development was speculative at best.
- She lost a significant amount of money on a speculative business venture that didn't pan out.
- Some financial experts view cryptocurrencies as a speculative asset, subject to extreme market fluctuations.
Synonyms
Related Words
Meaning 2
Not based on fact or investigation; "a notional figure of cost helps in determining production costs"; "speculative knowledge".
Classification
All adjective clusters.
Examples
- The company's decision to invest in the new technology was largely speculative, as there was no concrete evidence of its potential for success.
- Her speculative article about the potential causes of the ancient civilization's collapse sparked a heated debate among historians.
- The speculative nature of the investment made it a high-risk, high-reward proposition for the venture capitalists.
- The professor's speculative theories about the origins of the universe were met with skepticism by his colleagues.
- The speculative fiction novel explored the possibilities of a world where artificial intelligence had surpassed human intelligence.
Synonyms
Related Words
Meaning 3
Showing curiosity; "if someone saw a man climbing a light post they might get inquisitive"; "raised a speculative eyebrow".
Classification
All adjective clusters.
Examples
- She raised a speculative eyebrow as he walked in with a mysterious package in his hands.
- The detective's speculative glance swept the room, searching for clues.
- His speculative nature led him to wonder what was behind the strange occurrence.
- The tourists gazed up at the ancient monument with speculative expressions, trying to imagine its history.
- She leaned in, her voice taking on a speculative tone as she asked, "Do you think it's possible?"