supposedly

[ suh-poh-zid-lee ]

adverb

1. according to what is falsely claimed, assumed, or imagined:

   In fact, the supposedly "simple" work of digging holes, cutting down trees, and blasting snowdrifts offered her an education of the hands and head.

2. according to what is accepted or believed, without positive knowledge:

   Next weekend it's supposedly getting a bit colder again, but I think that winter is over.

Word History and Origins

Origin of supposedly¹

supposed ( def ) + -ly

Example Sentences

In an attempt to curry favor with whatever power controlled the singing statue, he supposedly paid for a repair job on it.

From Popular-Science

First of all, for a subject supposedly past its prime, the first two decades of this century have been pretty successful for physics.

From Quanta Magazine

The viewership decline is supposedly in line with what the networks would expect to see in a regular year.

From Digiday

The 2020 NFL season, supposedly inhospitable to rookie quarterbacks with its irregular offseason and absence of preseason games as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, is staging perhaps the greatest season of rookie quarterbacking in NFL history.

From Washington Post

Fine, he’s president-elect supposedly but the media pushes that.

From Washington Post

These (roughly) $2,500 ceremonies are supposedly about encouraging “positive feelings” on the part of the single brides.

From The Daily Beast

Michigan supposedly offered 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh a $42 million contract, which would him the highest-paid coach in the NCAA.

From The Daily Beast

Amelia says some truly terrible things to Sam, supposedly inhabited by the Babadook but really consumed in grief.

From The Daily Beast

Your move, supposedly not Tea-Party-fevered Governor John Kasich.

From The Daily Beast

They left angry and hurt, and when they were gone, Hitchcock came back supposedly to clear out his personal effects.

From The Daily Beast

This tax was retained supposedly to assert the right of Parliament to tax the colonists whenever it so desired.

From Project Gutenberg

The message that he had reference to was supposedly a night letter addressed to Washington.

From Project Gutenberg

The guard, without fear of the supposedly bound captive, stepped closer, bending over the young Army officer.

From Project Gutenberg

It is remarkable that Greek mythology was thus familiar to the supposedly blue-painted savages of Britain.

From Project Gutenberg

Near Stockport is Geecross, supposedly so named from “an ancient cross erected here by the Gee family”.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• allegedly
• apparently
• probably
• purportedly

Supposedly Vs. Supposably

What’s the difference between supposedly and supposably?

Supposedly means according to what is believed or accepted, without actually knowing for sure, as in Supposedly, he’s bringing the cake. Sometimes, supposedly means according to what is falsely claimed, assumed, or imagined, as in The supposedly safe ride injured eight people. Supposably is much less commonly used and means about the same thing as presumably or conceivably—as may be assumed, imagined, or supposed to be correct, as in We could supposably make the trip in a single day, but that would be pushing it.  

Yes, supposably is a “real word.” In a lot of cases, though, it’s mistakenly used in place of supposedly. Still, its meaning may sometimes actually fit the situation (even if the person who said it really meant supposedly).

Trying to remember the difference between the meaning of the two words can be tricky because both relate to what is believed or assumed and are adverbs (they’re used to modify or describe verbs or adjectives or even entire statements).

Here’s a great way to keep them straight: remember that supposably usually expresses the possibility that something might or could happen or be true, while supposedly often expresses doubt or uncertainty about something happening or being true.

Some people avoid using supposably altogether, instead opting for synonyms like presumably and conceivably, which are more common—and more likely to be clearly understood.

Here’s an example of supposedly and supposably used correctly in a sentence.

Example: With the number of new developers we’re supposedly hiring, we could supposably finish the project by the end of the summer. 

Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between supposedly and supposably.

Quiz yourself on supposedly vs. supposably!

Should supposedly or supposably be used in the following sentence?

He _____ did the laundry, but the hamper is still full.