spitballing
Throwing out suggestions
Spitballing is tossing out ideas casually, without commitment to their quality or feasibility: We're just spitballing here, but what if we moved the launch date?
The term evokes throwing something to see what sticks.
A spitball—originally a wad of chewed paper propelled through a straw—becomes a metaphor for rough, unpolished suggestions offered in brainstorming sessions.
Forming mental concepts
- suggestionIdea proposed for consideration
- proposalFormal plan for consideration
- conceptAbstract mental construct
- notionImprecise mental impression
hypothesis · conjecture · speculation · guesswork · brainwave · insight · theorizing · what-if
Unscripted spontaneous performance
- extemporizingSpeaking without preparation
- winging-itProceeding without preparation
- freestylingUnscripted lyrical performance
- off-the-cuffUnplanned, unrehearsed
impromptu · unscripted · unrehearsed · on-the-fly · jamming · vamping · loose · informal
Alternating reciprocal motion
- teamworkJoint effort toward shared aim
- synergyCombined effect exceeding components
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
- discussionExchange of ideas
workshop · huddle · roundtable · think-tank · collective · input
ideation
Forming mental concepts
- suggestionIdea proposed for consideration
- proposalFormal plan for consideration
- conceptAbstract mental construct
notion · hypothesis · conjecture · speculation · guesswork · brainwave · insight · theorizing · what-if · possibility
ad-libbing
Unscripted spontaneous performance
- extemporizingSpeaking without preparation
- winging-itProceeding without preparation
- freestylingUnscripted lyrical performance
off-the-cuff · impromptu · unscripted · unrehearsed · on-the-fly · jamming · vamping · loose · informal · exploratory
back-and-forth
Alternating reciprocal motion
- teamworkJoint effort toward shared aim
- synergyCombined effect exceeding components
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
discussion · workshop · huddle · roundtable · think-tank · collective · input
- estimatesestimate, estimation, ballpark, ballpark estimate, rough estimate
- guessesguess, conjecture, supposition, speculation, surmise
- Ideationbrainstorming, mind mapping, idea generation, ideas, brain dump
- brainstorming termsbrainstorming, ideation, wild ideas
- creatingcreating, inventing, producing, generating, making
- creativityimagination, creativity, brainstorming, unique voice, inspiration
spitballingscientific method
Structured process for investigation
due diligence · evidence-based reasoning · strategic planning · number crunching · fact-checking
spitballingcommitting
Carrying out an act
declaring · asserting · finalizing · concluding · pronouncing
ball, spit, spat, spitting, spits, spitter, spitball, spitballs, spitballed