shots in the dark
Attempts without information
Shots in the dark are attempts made without adequate information or visibility—guesses, really.
From the literal sense of firing a weapon when you can't see your target.
Most often describes speculative efforts that might miss entirely: The detectives were taking shots in the dark until new evidence emerged.
A single attempt is a shot in the dark.
- guessEstimate without certainty
- luckChance affecting outcomes
- aimPurpose or direction
- speculationUnproven theorizing or risky investment
- trial-and-errorSolving by successive approximation
trial and error · hit or miss · improvisation · randomness · serendipity · conjecture · educated guess · assumption · hypothesis · blind luck · inspiration · probability · breakthrough · silence · fortuity · lucky break · ingenuity · unpredictability
shots in the darksure things
Guaranteed outcomes
certainties · safe bets · known quantities · guarantees · dead certs
shots in the darkprecision strikes
Targeted attacks minimizing collateral
bull's-eyes · pinpoint accuracy · surgical strikes · tactical maneuvers · guided missiles
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