transcription, транскрипция: [ ges ]
( guesses, guessing, guessed)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
If you guess something, you give an answer or provide an opinion which may not be true because you do not have definite knowledge about the matter concerned.
The suit was faultless: Wood guessed that he was a very successful publisher or a banker...
You can only guess at what mental suffering they endure...
Paula reached for her camera, guessed distance and exposure, and shot two frames...
Guess what I did for the whole of the first week...
If she guessed wrong, it meant twice as many meetings the following week.
VERB : V that , V at n / wh , V n , V wh , V adv
2.
If you guess that something is the case, you correctly form the opinion that it is the case, although you do not have definite knowledge about it.
By now you will have guessed that I’m back in Ireland...
He should have guessed what would happen...
Someone might have guessed our secret and passed it on.
VERB : V that , V wh , V n
3.
A guess is an attempt to give an answer or provide an opinion which may not be true because you do not have definite knowledge about the matter concerned.
My guess is that the chance that these vaccines will work is zero...
He’d taken her pulse and made a guess at her blood pressure...
Well, we can hazard a guess at the answer.
N-COUNT : oft N that , N at n , N as to n / wh
4.
If you say that something is anyone’s guess or anybody’s guess , you mean that no-one can be certain about what is really true. ( INFORMAL )
Just when this will happen is anyone’s guess...
PHRASE : v-link PHR
5.
You say at a guess to indicate that what you are saying is only an estimate or what you believe to be true, rather than being a definite fact.
At a guess he’s been dead for two days.
PHRASE : PHR with cl [ vagueness ]
6.
You say I guess to show that you are slightly uncertain or reluctant about what you are saying. ( mainly AM INFORMAL )
I guess she thought that was pretty smart...
I guess he’s right...
‘I think you’re being paranoid.’—‘Yeah. I guess so.’
PHRASE : PHR with cl , PHR so/not [ vagueness ]
7.
If someone keeps you guessing , they do not tell you what you want to know.
The author’s intention is to keep everyone guessing until the bitter end...
PHRASE : V inflects
8.
You say guess what to draw attention to something exciting, surprising, or interesting that you are about to say. ( INFORMAL )
Guess what, I just got my first part in a movie.
CONVENTION