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# conjecture

noun (a conjecture, conjectures; also uncountable); verb (conjecture, conjectures, conjectured, conjecturing)

«conjecture» in the English dictionary: everyday and in Jewish tradition — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. A conjecture is a guess or opinion formed without full proof. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#m1)
2. To conjecture is to guess or suppose something when you do not have all the facts. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#m2)
3. (maths) A conjecture is a statement mathematicians think is true but have not yet proved. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#m3)

### In the lessons

In maths lessons pupils make a conjecture from patterns («I think all even numbers end in 0, 2, 4, 6 or 8») and then test it. In stories and news it means a guess. Phrases: «pure conjecture», «make a conjecture», «a matter of conjecture».

### Examples

- My conjecture is that the next number in the pattern is 20. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#x1)
- Without evidence, what you say is just conjecture. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#x2)
- Scientists conjectured that the planet had water. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#x3)
- Test your conjecture with more examples. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#x4)
- How the stones got there is still a matter of conjecture. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#x5)
- A famous conjecture says every even number bigger than 2 is the sum of two prime numbers. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#x6)
- No one knew who the dead stranger was, they could not even form a conjecture; the fragments of wreckage gave no clue to the matter. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/#x7)

### Note

In maths, a conjecture becomes a «theorem» when it is proved. One counterexample shows a conjecture is false. Formal; everyday words: «guess», «hunch», «theory».

## In Jewish tradition

In maths lessons pupils make a conjecture from patterns («I think all even numbers end in 0, 2, 4, 6 or 8») and then test it. In stories and news it means a guess. Phrases: «pure conjecture», «make a conjecture», «a matter of conjecture».

### Examples

- I shall not venture to conjecture. (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914)) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/C/conjecture/#x1)

### Note

In maths, a conjecture becomes a «theorem» when it is proved. One counterexample shows a conjecture is false. Formal; everyday words: «guess», «hunch», «theory».

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «conjecture» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/conjecture/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«conjecture» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/conjecture.html) on Mova free.
- [Trees and pragmatics of «conjecture» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/C/conjecture/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«conjecture» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/judaism/w/conjecture.html) on Mova free.