| Main Entry: | speculative |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | theoretical |
Synonyms: |
abstract, analytical, assumed, conceptive, dangerous, dicey, experimental, formularized, hairy, hazardous, hypothetical, ideal, idealized, ideological, iffy, in theory, intellectual, logical, notional, philosophical, presumed, risky, uncertain, unproved, unproven, unsubstantiated |
| Main Entry: | academic |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | relating to theories, philosophy |
Synonyms: |
abstract, closet, conjectural, formalistic, hypothetical, notional, speculative, theoretical |
Antonyms: |
ordinary, plain, practical, simple |
| Main Entry: | chancy |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | dangerous, risky |
Synonyms: |
capricious, contingent, dicey, erratic, fluctuant, fluky, hazardous, iffy, incalculable, precarious, problematic, problematical, rocky, speculative, ticklish, touchy, tricky, uncertain, unpredictable, unsound, whimsical |
Antonyms: |
certain, not dangerous, safe, secure, sure, tried |
| Main Entry: | contemplative |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | deep in thought |
Synonyms: |
attentive, cogitative, in brown study, intent, introspective, lost, meditative, musing, pensive, pondering, rapt, reflecting, reflective, ruminative, speculative, thinking, thoughtful |
Antonyms: |
disdainful, disregarding, negligent, rejecting, scornful, shallow, unreflective |
| Main Entry: | dangerous |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | hazardous, troubling |
Synonyms: |
alarming, bad, breakneck, chancy, critical, dangersome, deadly, delicate, dynamite, exposed, fatal, formidable, hairy*, heavy*, hot*, impending, impregnable, insecure, jeopardous, loaded, malignant, menacing, mortal, nasty, on collision course, parlous, perilous, portentous, precarious, pressing, queasy, risky, serious, serpentine, shaky, speculative, terrible, thorny, threatening, ticklish, touch-and-go, touchy, treacherous, ugly*, unhealthy, unsafe, unstable, urgent, viperous, vulnerable, wicked |
Antonyms: |
careful, guarded, safe, secure, unhazardous, untroubled |
| Main Entry: | doctrinaire |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | dogmatic, opinionated |
Synonyms: |
authoritarian, authoritative, biased, bigoted, bullheaded, dictative, dictatorial, dogged, fanatical, impractical, inflexible, insistent, magisterial, mulish, obstinate, one-sided, pertinacious, pigheaded, rigid, speculative, stiff-necked, stubborn, unrealistic |
Antonyms: |
amenable, flexible, manageable, obedient, submissive |
| Main Entry: | doubtful |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | questionable, unclear |
Synonyms: |
ambiguous, borderline, chancy, clouded, contingent, debatable, dicey, disreputable, doubtable, dubious, dubitable, equivocal, far-fetched, fat chance, fishy, hazardous, hazy, iffy, impugnable, inconclusive, indecisive, indefinite, indeterminate, indistinct, insecure, long shot, obscure, on thin ice, open, pending, precarious, problematic, shady, sneaky*, speculative, suspect, suspicious, touch-and-go, touchy, uncertain, unconfirmed, undecided, uneasy, unsettled, unstable, unsure, up for grabs |
| Notes: | a person is capable of doubting, whereas a thing is dubitable; dubious, unlike doubtful, carries the connotation of suspicion |
Antonyms: |
certain, clear, confirmed, decided, definite, exact, resolved, settled, unquestionable |
| Main Entry: | dreamy |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | illusory, romantic |
Synonyms: |
abstracted, astral, calming, chimerical, daydreaming, excellent, fanciful, fantastic, gentle, idealistic, imaginary, immaterial, impractical, intangible, introspective, introvertive, lulling, marvelous, misty, musing, mythical, nightmarish, otherworldly, out of this world, pensive, phantasmagoric, phantasmagorical, preoccupied, quixotic, relaxing, shadowy, soothing, speculative, unreal, unsubstantial, utopian, vague, visionary, whimsical |
Antonyms: |
horrible, terrible, unromantic |
| Main Entry: | experimental |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | exploratory |
Synonyms: |
beginning, developmental, empirical, experiential, first stage, laboratory, momentary, on approval, pilot, preliminary, preparatory, primary, probationary, provisional, speculative, temporary, tentative, test, trial, trial-and-error, unconcluded, under probation, unproved |
Antonyms: |
proven, tested, tried |
| Main Entry: | hypothetical |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | guessed, assumed |
Synonyms: |
academic, assumptive, casual, concocted, conditional, conjecturable, conjectural, contestable, contingent, debatable, disputable, doubtful, equivocal, imaginary, imagined, indefinite, indeterminate, postulated, presumptive, presupposed, pretending, problematic, provisory, putative, questionable, refutable, speculative, stochastic, supposed, suppositional, suppositious, suspect, theoretic, theoretical, uncertain, unconfirmed, vague |
Antonyms: |
calculated, confirmed, factual, measured, proved, proven, real, reliable, truthful |