guesswork

Definition

An estimate, judgment or opinion made by guessing, from limited information.

Etymology

From guess + work. Compare Dutch giswerk (“guesswork”).

Example Sentences

• "By a careful study of the figure we might suspect that when the rectangle becomes a square its area would be the greatest, but this would at best be mere guesswork. A better way would evidently be to plot the graph of the function (1) and note its behavior."

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