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surmise

Pronunciation: /səˈmʌɪz/

Translate surmise | into German | into Italian | into Spanish

Definition of surmise

verb

[no object, usually with clause]

suppose that something is true without having evidence to confirm it:he surmised that something must be wrong [with direct speech]:‘I don’t think they’re locals,’ she surmised

noun

a supposition that something may be true, even though there is no evidence to confirm it:Charles was glad to have his surmise confirmed [mass noun]:all these observations remain surmise

Origin:

late Middle English (in the senses 'formal allegation' and 'allege formally'): from Anglo-Norman French and Old French surmise, feminine past participle of surmettre 'accuse', from late Latin supermittere 'put in afterwards', from super- 'over' + mittere 'send'

Spelling help

Unlike most verbs ending in -ise, surmise cannot be spelled with an -ize ending.

surmise in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of surmise in the US English dictionary

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