suspicious

[suh-spish-uhs]

adjective

1. tending to cause or excite suspicion; questionable.

   suspicious behavior.

   Synonyms: doubtful, dubious, suspect

2. inclined to suspect, especially inclined to suspect evil; distrustful.

   a suspicious tyrant.

   Synonyms: wary, mistrustful

3. full of or feeling suspicion.

4. expressing or indicating suspicion.

   a suspicious glance.

suspicious

/ səˈspɪʃəs /

adjective

1. exciting or liable to excite suspicion; questionable

2. disposed to suspect something wrong

3. indicative or expressive of suspicion

Other Word Forms

• suspiciously adverb
• suspiciousness noun
• hypersuspicious adjective
• hypersuspiciously adverb
• hypersuspiciousness noun
• oversuspicious adjective
• oversuspiciously adverb
• oversuspiciousness noun
• presuspicious adjective
• presuspiciously adverb
• presuspiciousness noun
• self-suspicious adjective
• supersuspicious adjective
• supersuspiciously adverb
• supersuspiciousness noun
• unsuspicious adjective
• unsuspiciously adverb
• unsuspiciousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of suspicious¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Latin suspīciōsus, from suspīci(ō) “mistrust” ( suspicion ) + -ōsus -ous

Example Sentences

While Liz says she “came here with the best of intentions” and claims she and Josh were introduced by their shared agent, Ellen is suspicious and rightly so.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Large numbers of masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents could round up voters, many of them citizens who “look suspicious.”

Read more on Salon

This week voters across California received a suspicious text message saying they’d failed to turn in their ballots for the Nov. 4 statewide special election on redistricting.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But consumers can become suspicious if they believe a brand isn’t being completely transparent.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"FLOs are typically only deployed where a death occurs under suspicious circumstances," the force said.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• apprehensive 
• careful 
• cautious 
• doubtful 
• incredulous 
• jealous 
• leery 
• mistrustful 
• skeptical 
• wary 
• watchful 

When To Use

What does suspicious mean?

To be suspicious is to have a suspicion about someone or something, especially to have a feeling of distrust about the person or thing. To be suspicious of someone most often involves suspecting that they are engaged in some wrongdoing, as in My parents became suspicious of me when I kept asking whether they’d be home tomorrow.The word is commonly used to describe a person who is suspicious of someone or something in a specific situation. Sometimes, though, it’s used to describe a person who’s suspicious in general—meaning that they’re generally skeptical or distrustful. It can also be used to describe something, such as an action, that indicates that a person is suspicious, as in She gave me a suspicious look that meant she knew I was up to something.Suspicious can also be used to describe someone or something that causes suspicion, as in The guards are trained to identify suspicious people, suspicious behavior, and suspicious packages.Being suspicious is usually based on something, such as a hunch or some kind of evidence, but the word is typically used in situations in which there is some doubt—when someone suspects something, but isn’t sure. The same thing is implied by the verb suspect and the noun suspicion.Suspicious is most commonly used in negative contexts, but this isn’t always the case. For example, you might be suspicious that someone is planning a surprise party for you.Example: Police are encouraging citizens to alert the authorities if they see any suspicious activity on the subway.