definitions

presuppose

[ pree-suh-pohz ]
/ ˌpri səˈpoʊz /
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR presuppose ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), pre·sup·posed, pre·sup·pos·ing.

to suppose or assume beforehand; take for granted in advance.
(of a thing, condition, or state of affairs) to require or imply as an antecedent condition: An effect presupposes a cause.

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RELATED WORDS

inference, hunch, supposition, thesis, shot, surmise, presumption, guess, acceptance, belief, suspicion, postulate, conjecture, theory, expectation, postulation, hypothesis, fancy, premise, posit

Nearby words

presumption of law, presumption of survivorship, presumptive, presumptive heir, presumptuous, presuppose, presuppurative, presurmise, presynaptic, presynaptic membrane, presystole

Origin of presuppose

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English word from Middle French word presupposer. See pre-, suppose

Related forms

pre·sup·po·si·tion [pree-suhp-uh-zish-uhn] /ˌpri sʌp əˈzɪʃ ən/, nounpre·sup·po·si·tion·less, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for presupposition

British Dictionary definitions for presupposition

presuppose

/ (ˌpriːsəˈpəʊz) /

verb (tr)

to take for granted; assume
to require or imply as a necessary prior condition
philosophy logic linguistics to require (a condition) to be satisfied as a precondition for a statement to be either true or false or for a speech act to be felicitous. Have you stopped beating your wife? presupposes that the person addressed has a wife and has beaten her

Derived Forms

presupposition (ˌpriːsʌpəˈzɪʃən), noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012