[es.ti.mate] vt -mat.ed ; -mat.ing [L aestimatus, pp. of aestimare to value, estimate] (ca. 1532) 1 archaic a: esteem b: appraise
2. a: to judge tentatively or approximately the value, worth, or significance of b: to determine roughly the size, extent, or nature of c: to produce a statement of the approximate cost of
3: judge, conclude -- es.ti.ma.tive adj syn estimate, appraise, evaluate, value, rate, assess mean to judge something with respect to its worth or significance. estimate implies a judgment, considered or casual, that precedes or takes the place of actual measuring or counting or testing out "estimated the crowd at two hundred". appraise commonly implies the fixing by an expert of the monetary worth of a thing, but it may be used of any critical judgment "having their house appraised". evaluate suggests an attempt to determine relative or intrinsic worth in terms other than monetary "evaluate a student's work". value equals appraise but without implying expertness of judgment "a watercolor valued by the donor at $500". rate adds to estimate the notion of placing a thing according to a scale of values "a highly rated restaurant". assess implies a critical appraisal for the purpose of understanding or interpreting, or as a guide in taking action "officials are trying to assess the damage".
[2]es.ti.mate n (1563) 1: the act of appraising or valuing: calculation
2: an opinion or judgment of the nature, character, or quality of a person or thing "had a high ~ of his abilities" 3 a: a rough or approximate calculation b: a numerical value obtained from a statistical sample and assigned to a population parameter
4: a statement of the cost of work to be done