posit

American  

[poz-it] / ˈpɒz ɪt /

verb (used with object)

1. to place, put, or set.

2. to lay down or assume as a fact or principle; postulate.

---

noun

1. something that is posited; an assumption; postulate.

posit British  

/ ˈpɒzɪt /

verb

1. to assume or put forward as fact or the factual basis for an argument; postulate

2. to put in position

---

noun

1. a fact, idea, etc, that is posited; assumption

Etymology

Origin of posit

First recorded in 1640–50; from Latin positus, past participle of pōnere “to place, put”

Example Sentences

Perhaps it’s one long defense of being a hater, as a Forbes story published a few weeks ago posits.

From Salon

The action, if such it can be called, begins on the eve of a world championship, when matches, the musical posits, were a proxy war between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal

He called it a strange game and posited the theory that the 2-1 win against Belarus last month, when Scotland were booed off, was a better three points than people imagined.

From BBC

James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling’s “broken windows” theory posited that crime is more than a willful act—it’s the product of a cultural atmosphere.

From The Wall Street Journal

Atwood posits that “every question-and-answer session” is an illusion where there are “at least two beings: the one who lives, and the one who writes.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• hypothesize
• postulate
• presuppose