Suspicion — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

noun verb /sə-ˈspi-shən/ sus·pi·cion

Meaning & Definition of Suspicion

Suspicion (noun)

  1. the act or an instance of suspecting something wrong without proof or on slight evidence, mistrust
  2. a state of mental uneasiness and uncertainty, doubt
  3. a barely detectable amount, trace

Suspicion (verb)

  1. suspect

Suspicion (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. a feeling or attitude that one does not know the truth, truthfulness, or trustworthiness of someone or something

    "all his promises were received with well-deserved suspicion"

    similar: distrust, distrustfulness, doubt, dubiety, dubitation (archaic), incertitude, misdoubt, misgiving, mistrust, mistrustfulness, query, reservation, skepticism, uncertainty
    related: disbelief, incredulity, unbelief, anxiety, concern, paranoia, wariness, compunction, niggle (chiefly British), qualm, scruple, tremor
    opposite: assurance, belief, certainty, certitude, confidence, conviction, sureness, surety, trust
    near: credence, faith

  2. a very small amount

    "new parents who were alarmed by just a suspicion of a rash on their baby's chest"

    similar: ace, bit, crumb, dab, dram, driblet, glimmer, hint, lick, little, mite, nip, ounce, particle, peanuts, ray, scintilla, scruple, shade, shadow, shred, skosh, smack, smell, smidgen, snap, soupçon, spark, spatter, speck, splash, spot, sprinkling, strain, streak, tad, touch, trace, drop in the bucket
    related: hoot, iota, jot, minim, minimum, modicum, semblance, syllable, tittle, vestige, whit, atom, dot, fleck, flyspeck, grain, granule, molecule, morsel, mote, nubbin, patch, scrap, dash, drop, pinch, part, portion, section, bite, nibble, taste, handful, scattering, smatter, smattering, dose, shot, chip, flake, fragment, shard, shiver, sliver, smithereens, splinter, tatter, clipping, paring, shaving
    near: abundance, barrel, boatload, bucket, bundle, bushel, deal, fistful, gobs, heaps, lashings (chiefly British), loads, lot, mass, mess, mountain, much, oodles, passel, peck, pile, plenty, potful, profusion, quantity, raft, reams, scads, stack, wad, wealth, volume, bonanza, embarrassment, excess, overabundance, overage, overflow, overkill, overmuch, oversupply, superabundance, superfluity, surfeit, surplus, chunk, hunk, lump, slab

Suspicion (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to form an opinion from little or no evidence

    "no one will ever suspicion that I'm the one who pulled the prank"

    similar: assume, conjecture, daresay, guess, imagine, presume, speculate, suppose, surmise, suspect
    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

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Suspicion

The most common words with a similar meaning to Suspicion:

Archaic: dubitation
distrust, distrustfulness, doubt, dubiety, incertitude, misdoubt, misgiving, mistrust, mistrustfulness, query, reservation, skepticism, uncertainty, ace, bit, crumb, dab, dram, driblet, glimmer, hint, lick, little, mite, nip, ounce, particle, peanuts, ray, scintilla, scruple, shade, shadow, shred, skosh, smack, smell, smidgen, snap, soupçon

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Suspicion

Words with the opposite meaning of Suspicion:

assurance, belief, certainty, certitude, confidence, conviction, sureness, surety, trust

Related Words for Suspicion

disbelief, incredulity, unbelief, anxiety, concern, paranoia, wariness, compunction, niggle, qualm, tremor, hoot, iota, jot, minim, minimum, modicum, semblance, syllable, tittle, vestige, whit, atom, dot, fleck, flyspeck, grain, granule, molecule, morsel

Near Antonyms of Suspicion

credence, faith, abundance, barrel, boatload, bucket, bundle, bushel, deal, fistful, gobs, heaps, lashings, loads, lot, mass, mess, mountain, much, oodles, passel, peck, pile, plenty, potful, profusion, quantity, raft, reams, scads

Word Forms of Suspicion

Inflections: suspicioned, suspicioning

Origin & Etymology of Suspicion

Middle English suspecioun, from Anglo-French, from Latin suspicion-, suspicio, from suspicere to suspect suspect

First known use: 14th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Suspicion

Words & Phrases Containing Suspicion

above/beyond suspicion, on suspicion of, under a cloud of suspicion, under suspicion, the finger of blame/suspicion

Frequently Asked Questions about Suspicion

What does "Suspicion" mean?

"Suspicion" means the act or an instance of suspecting something wrong without proof or on slight evidence, mistrust. As an a noun and a verb, it is defined as: the act or an instance of suspecting something wrong without proof or on slight evidence, mistrust. It has 3 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Suspicion"?

Other words for "Suspicion" include distrust, distrustfulness, doubt, dubiety, dubitation, incertitude, misdoubt and misgiving. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Suspicion" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Suspicion"?

There are 138 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Suspicion". Common alternatives include distrust, distrustfulness, doubt, dubiety, dubitation, incertitude, misdoubt, misgiving, mistrust and mistrustfulness.

What is the opposite of "Suspicion"?

Antonyms of "Suspicion" include assurance, belief, certainty, certitude, confidence, conviction, sureness and surety. Near antonyms include credence, faith, abundance and barrel.

How do you use "Suspicion" in a sentence?

Examples of "Suspicion" in a sentence: "all his promises were received with well-deserved suspicion"; "new parents who were alarmed by just a suspicion of a rash on their baby's chest"; "no one will ever suspicion that I'm the one who pulled the prank".

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

"Suspicion" can be used as a noun and a verb, depending on the context.

Is "Suspicion" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As a C1-level word, "Suspicion" is typical of Cambridge C1 Advanced (CAE), IELTS band 7.0–8.0, TOEFL iBT 95–113, PTE Academic 76–84, TOEIC Listening & Reading 945+. Advanced words like this are also useful for the GRE, SAT, GMAT, and LSAT.

How do you pronounce "Suspicion"?

"Suspicion" is pronounced /sə-ˈspi-shən/ and divided into syllables as sus·pi·cion.