See Also: guess(medicine)
guess(1)(dictionary)
guess(2)(dictionary)
guess(dictionary)
second-guess(dictionary)
guess work(dictionary)
guess-warp(dictionary)
guess 1, verb(dictionary)
guess 2, noun(dictionary)

guess (iou)



guess verb. Also ghess. ME.
[Perh. orig. nautical and from vars. with -e- of Middle Low German, Middle Dutch (Dutch, Frisian) gissen, or Old Swedish gissa, Old Danish gitse, all ult. from base of GET verb (cf. Old Norse geta guess). The spellings with gu- and gh- date from 16: cf. GUEST noun.]
verb trans. Form a rough estimate of (an amount, size, distance, etc.) without actual measurement or calculation. ME.
J. Tyndall The eye being liable to be grossly deceived in guessing the direction of a perpendicular. T. Hardy Guess my surprise when..I received a mysterious note.
verb intrans. Take aim (foll. by to); purpose to do. ME-M16.
verb trans. (with compl.). Consider to be; regard as. Only in ME.
verb trans. Suppose, think; think it likely, believe. Foll. by clause as obj. Long obsolete exc. in N. Amer. colloq. in 1st person sing. (I) guess. LME.
R. Macdonald 'May I come in for a minute?' 'I guess so.' W. Wharton Joe knows everybody, everywhere. I guess that's part of being a cop. M. Callaghan There's no harm in you talking to Mother if you want to, I guess.
verb trans. & intrans. Form an opinion (about), or form the opinion that, on the basis of uncertain indications or none; hazard an opinion as to why, who, whether, etc.; estimate to be; conjecture. Also foll. by subord. clause, & with. obj. & compl. LME.
Shakespeare 1 Henry VI Discover..what cause that was, For I am ignorant and cannot guess. G. A. Birmingham I should guess the island to be about two miles around. E. O'Neill Guess which one of Mamie's charmers I picked. J. Updike Nelson guesses she's three or four years younger than he is. J. Rathbone I did not need to listen, for already I had guessed her tale. I. Wallace Dilman guessed that there must be more than three thousand persons present.
verb intrans. Indulge in conjecture or speculation. Foll. by at: (attempt to) solve or discover by conjecture. LME.
J. Raban People could only guess at the total amounts involved. V. Woolf Lye seemed to hold infinite possibilities she had never guessed at. A. Burgess Laurence had a great capacity to see into things, to guess and be proved right.
verb trans. & intrans. Conjecture rightly; solve (a riddle etc.), divine the nature of (a thing), by guesswork. M16.
H. Bushnell But which is worse..it is not difficult, I think, to guess. Dickens Sure enough it's Barnabyhow did you guess? G. Greene The others had to guess his wish by asking questions.
Phrases: guessing game a game in which much of the playing consists of guessing; fig. a situation in which one is kept constantly in the dark. keep a person guessing colloq. (orig. US) keep a person in a state of uncertainty about one's feelings, future intentions, etc.
guessable adjective E19.
guesser noun LME.
guessingly adverb by guesswork E17.