All 3 Uses of
conjecture
in
Persuasion, by Jane Austen
- Charles and Henrietta returned, bringing, as may be conjectured, Charles Hayter with them.†
Chpt 10 *conjectured = concluded or guessed based on inconclusive evidence
- She had before conjectured him to be a stranger like themselves, and determined that a well-looking groom, who was strolling about near the two inns as they came back, should be his servant.†
Chpt 12
- "Upon my word," said she, "I should not have supposed that my opinion of any one could have admitted of such difference of conjecture, steady and matter of fact as I may call myself.†
Chpt 14
Definition:
a conclusion or opinion based on inconclusive evidence; or the act of forming of such a conclusion or opinion
A conjecture can be widely believed, but the word is also frequently used to imply that evidence is insufficient to support a belief.