Suspecting — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

verb adjective /sə-ˈspekt/ sus·pect

Meaning & Definition of Suspecting

Suspecting (verb)

  1. to imagine (one) to be guilty or culpable on slight evidence or without proof
  2. to have doubts of, distrust
  3. to imagine to exist or be true, likely, or probable

Suspecting (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. inclined to doubt or question claims

    "suspecting dieters probably wouldn't fall for a weight-loss plan that claims you can eat as much as you want"

    similar: disbelieving, distrustful, doubting, incredulous, mistrustful, negativistic, questioning, show-me, skeptical, suspicious, unbelieving
    related: paranoid, critical, puzzled, quizzical, careful, cautious, guarded, gun-shy, leery, wary, watchful, cynical, experienced, knowing, sophisticated, worldly, worldly-wise, curious, inquiring, inquisitive, nosy, snoopy, uncertain, unconvinced, undecided, undetermined, unsettled, unsure, hesitant
    opposite: credulous, gullible, trustful, trusting, uncritical, unquestioning
    near: green, ingenuous, innocent, naive, simple, simpleminded, unknowing, unsophisticated, unworldly, wide-eyed, certain, confident, positive, sure, callow, inexperienced, raw, childlike, idealistic, impractical, beguiled, deceived, duped, gulled, tricked, careless, heedless, unsuspecting, unsuspicious, unwary

Suspecting (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to form an opinion from little or no evidence

    "we suspected that the runaway was a little younger than the 16 she claimed to be—more like 13"

    similar: assuming, conjecturing, daresaying, guessing, imagining, presuming, speculating, supposing, surmising, suspicioning (chiefly dialect)
    related: concluding, deducing, gathering, inferring, hypothecating, hypothesizing, theorizing, believing, conceiving, expecting, judging, reckoning (chiefly dialect), taking, thinking
    near: demonstrating, documenting, establishing, proving, substantiating, validating, ascertaining, determining, finding out, learning

  2. to have no trust or confidence in

    "I suspected him from the moment he said he was an old friend of my sister's, since I probably would have heard about him"

    similar: distrusting, doubting, misdoubting, mistrusting, questioning
    related: disbelieving, discounting, discrediting, negating
    opposite: trusting
    near: banking (on or upon), counting (on or upon), depending (on or upon), relying (on or upon)

Related Entry: Suspect (verb)

Suspect is a different word from Suspecting. The synonyms below are for suspect, not for suspecting.

  1. to form an opinion from little or no evidence

    "we suspected that the runaway was a little younger than the 16 she claimed to be—more like 13"

    similar: assume, conjecture, daresay, guess, imagine, presume, speculate, suppose, surmise, suspicion (chiefly dialect)
    related: conclude, deduce, gather, infer, hypothecate, hypothesize, theorize, believe, conceive, expect, judge, reckon (chiefly dialect), take, think
    near: demonstrate, document, establish, prove, substantiate, validate, ascertain, determine, find out, learn

  2. to have no trust or confidence in

    "I suspected him from the moment he said he was an old friend of my sister's, since I probably would have heard about him"

    similar: distrust, doubt, misdoubt, mistrust, question
    related: disbelieve, discount, discredit, negate
    opposite: trust
    near: bank (on or upon), count (on or upon), depend (on or upon), rely (on or upon)

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Suspecting

The most common words with a similar meaning to Suspecting:

Chiefly dialect: suspicioning
disbelieving, distrustful, doubting, incredulous, mistrustful, negativistic, questioning, show-me, skeptical, suspicious, unbelieving, assuming, conjecturing, daresaying, guessing, imagining, presuming, speculating, supposing, surmising, distrusting, misdoubting, mistrusting

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Suspecting

Words with the opposite meaning of Suspecting:

credulous, gullible, trustful, trusting, uncritical, unquestioning

Related Words for Suspecting

paranoid, critical, puzzled, quizzical, careful, cautious, guarded, gun-shy, leery, wary, watchful, cynical, experienced, knowing, sophisticated, worldly, worldly-wise, curious, inquiring, inquisitive, nosy, snoopy, uncertain, unconvinced, undecided, undetermined, unsettled, unsure, hesitant, concluding

Near Antonyms of Suspecting

green, ingenuous, innocent, naive, simple, simpleminded, unknowing, unsophisticated, unworldly, wide-eyed, certain, confident, positive, sure, callow, inexperienced, raw, childlike, idealistic, impractical, beguiled, deceived, duped, gulled, tricked, careless, heedless, unsuspecting, unsuspicious, unwary

Word Forms of Suspecting

Inflections: suspected, suspects

Origin & Etymology of Suspecting

Middle English, from Latin suspectare, frequentative of suspicere to look up at, regard with awe, suspect, from sub-, sus- up, secretly + specere to look at sub-, spy

First known use: 15th centuryt

Frequently Asked Questions about Suspecting

What does "Suspecting" mean?

"Suspecting" means to imagine (one) to be guilty or culpable on slight evidence or without proof. As an a verb and an adjective, it is defined as: to imagine (one) to be guilty or culpable on slight evidence or without proof. It has 3 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Suspecting"?

Other words for "Suspecting" include disbelieving, distrustful, doubting, incredulous, mistrustful, negativistic, questioning and show-me. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Suspecting" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Suspecting"?

There are 70 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Suspecting". Common alternatives include disbelieving, distrustful, doubting, incredulous, mistrustful, negativistic, questioning, show-me, skeptical and suspicious.

What is the opposite of "Suspecting"?

Antonyms of "Suspecting" include credulous, gullible, trustful, trusting, uncritical and unquestioning. Near antonyms include green, ingenuous, innocent and naive.

How do you use "Suspecting" in a sentence?

Examples of "Suspecting" in a sentence: "suspecting dieters probably wouldn't fall for a weight-loss plan that claims you can eat as much as you want"; "we suspected that the runaway was a little younger than the 16 she claimed to be—more like 13"; "I suspected him from the moment he said he was an old friend of my sister's, since I probably would have heard about him".

Is "Suspecting" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Suspecting" can be used as a verb and an adjective, depending on the context.

How do you pronounce "Suspecting"?

"Suspecting" is pronounced /sə-ˈspekt/ and divided into syllables as sus·pect.

What is the origin of the word "Suspecting"?

"Suspecting" comes from Middle English, from Latin suspectare, frequentative of suspicere to look up at, regard with awe, suspect, from sub-, sus- up, secretly + specere to look at sub-, spy. First known use: 15th centuryt.