Engspire × Engreesi
How To

Having a guess

Sometimes you don't know exactly what something is, but you have some idea.

Here are some phrases to use when you need to guess.

Ten ways to make a guess

casual · neutral · formal

  1. Off the top of my head, I think she's 26.casual"How old is the new teacher?" "Off the top of my head, I think she's 26."
  2. Knowing (Sri Lankans), he likes cricket.neutralKnowing Sri Lankans, he likes cricket.
  3. If I had to take a guess, I'd say she's 26neutralIf I had to take a guess, I'd say she's 26.
  4. I'd say she's 26.neutral"How old is your cousin?" "I'd say she's 26."
  5. Chances are she's 26.neutralChances are she's 26 or 27.
  6. At a guess, I'd say she's 26.neutralAt a guess, I'd say she's 26.
  7. Probably about 26.neutral"How old is he?" "Probably about 26."
  8. We're talking maybe late twenties.casualHis age? We're talking maybe late twenties.
  9. About 6-ishcasual"When will you come?" "About 6-ish."
  10. Around about 6 o'clockcasualI'll be there around about 6 o'clock.

How to use them

  • , and 7 can be used when guessing almost anything (age, height, time, personality, problems, etc).
  • is based on a generalization.
  • shows that the speaker really doesn't know the exact number.
  • is only used with numbers and time.
  • is usually used for numbers or a period of time.

Quick check

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  1. "Off the top of my head" means:

  2. "6-ish" means:

  3. Which phrase says your guess is quite likely right?

See also: Speculating · Saying something is true

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Generalizing

There are many phrases in English that we can use when we want to say that something is true most of the time but not all the time.

Speculating

Here are some ways of talking about what we think might happen, when we don't really know.

On this page

Quick check