surmise

[ser-mahyz, ser-mahyz, sur-mahyz]

verb (used with object)

surmised, surmising 

1. to think or infer without certain or strong evidence; conjecture; guess.

   Synonyms: suspect, suppose, imagine

verb (used without object)

surmised, surmising 

1. to conjecture or guess.

noun

1. a matter of conjecture.

2. an idea or thought of something as being possible or likely.

3. a conjecture or opinion.

surmise

verb

1. (when tr, may take a clause as object) to infer (something) from incomplete or uncertain evidence

noun

1. an idea inferred from inconclusive evidence

Other Word Forms

• surmisable adjective
• surmisedly adverb
• surmiser noun
• unsurmised adjective
• unsurmising adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of surmise¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English surmisen, from Anglo-French surmis(e), Middle French “accused,” past participle of surmettre “to accuse,” from Latin supermittere “to throw upon,” from super super- + mittere “to let go, send”

Word History and Origins

Origin of surmise¹

C15: from Old French, from surmettre to accuse, from Latin supermittere to throw over, from _super- + mittere to send

Synonym Study

See guess.

Example Sentences

Yet, with how much time these commenters seem to have to seek out unemployment announcements, one has to surmise that internet trolls aren’t exactly the most gainfully employed members of society themselves.

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From the journals Metcalfe has surmised that Vivien, herself a brilliant literary scholar and teacher, had willfully lived out her marriage under Blundy’s shadow, the dutiful handmaiden to a literary eminence.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Cashin surmises that the reason he was most proud of his victory in Smith v.

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From what we can surmise, the baby is a device to showcase the nobility of the show’s male characters or lack thereof.

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"It was an interesting childhood," Terry surmises, with a chuckle.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• deduce 
• hypothesize 
• infer 
• opine 
• presume 
• pretend 
• speculate 
• theorize