guess
A person who guesses doesn’t have complete knowledge, or there is no knowledge when considering a topic. You can use this word as a verb or as a noun.
- I don’t know the answer, so I’ll just have to guess.
- He guessed at the answers.
- She made a guess.
Guess who!
a. Use "guess" as a verb.
To guess is to predict, assume, believe, try, or answer.
- She guessed at the answer, but she was wrong.
- It’s okay to guess.
- I’d rather not guess. It’s better to be sure.
- Manfred guessed at most of the answers on the test, and he failed.
- They’re just guessing. They don’t really know what’s going on.
You will often hear “guess” as a response to a statement or question:
A: Do you want to go shopping with me?
B: I guess.
A: Is he really going to quit his job?
B: I guess. That’s what he said.
A: Are they really going to do that?
B: I guess they are.
- She could guess at what he was holding behind his back.
- Can you guess what they are watching on TV?
b. Use "guess" as a noun.
You can make a guess if you aren’t sure what is true.
- That was a good guess, but you’re wrong.
- She made a bad guess.
- You can give it a guess.
- You’re a good guesser. (guesser = a person who guesses)
- I don’t want to make a guess.
- We can’t make a guess either way. (We really don’t know what’s going to happen.)
- Is that a guess?
- They made an informed guess and acted upon it.
- May I offer a guess? (Do you want to hear my opinion about what happened?)
- What is your guess regarding what happens in the future if we don’t tackle the big issues facing our planet?
- He made a bad guess on his tax forms.
c. There are many expressions that use "guess."
- Guess who! (You can’t see me, but I want you to guess the name of the person who contacted you. This is a command.)
- Your guess is as good as mine.
- It’s a guessing game at this point. (No one knows what will happen, but many people might be trying to make a prediction.)
- She guessed wrong. (She made a bad choice.)
- It’s anyone’s guess at this point.
- That’s not a bad guess. (not a bad guess = very close to correct)
- We can only guess. (In this situation, no one knows what is happening.)
- A: What’s he thinking about?
- B: We can only guess.
Be prepared to hear the word “guess” in everyday conversations. It’s a very popular word.