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assume

verb

Synonyms and Antonyms of assume

1 to take to or upon oneself

  • we promised to assume responsibility for any damage to the flower beds caused by the volleyball game in the backyard
Synonyms of assume

accept, bear, shoulder, take over, undertake
Words Related to assume

adopt, embrace, take up

advocate, back, champion, endorse (also indorse), espouse, stand by, support, uphold

accede, acquiesce, agree, assent, consent

reaccept, reassume
Near Antonyms of assume

abjure, recant, renounce, retract, take back, unsay, withdraw

decline, refuse, reject, spurn, turn down

abstain (from), forbear, refrain (from)

avoid, bypass, detour

abandon, abnegate, forsake, give up, relinquish, spurn, surrender

back down, back off, backtrack
Antonyms of assume

disavow, disclaim, disown, repudiate

2 to take as true or as a fact without actual proof

  • everyone assumed, wrongly, that someone else was bringing dessert
Synonyms of assume

hypothecate, hypothesize, postulate, premise, presume, presuppose, say, suppose
Words Related to assume

accept, believe, credit, swallow

conclude, deduce, gather, infer, judge, take

conjecture, figure, guess, reckon [chiefly dialect], surmise, suspect, suspicion [chiefly dialect], think

conceive, dream, fancy, imagine, perceive, preconceive

speculate, theorize

affirm, allege, assert, aver, avouch, avow, claim, contend, declare, insist, maintain, profess
Phrases Synonymous with assume

take for granted
Near Antonyms of assume

challenge, controvert, disagree (with), disbelieve, discount, discredit, dispute, distrust, doubt, mistrust, question, wonder (about)

deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, reject, repudiate

belie, confute, disprove, rebut, refute

3 to form an opinion from little or no evidence

  • as I just assumed it was too late to go out, I didn't think to ask
Synonyms of assume

conjecture, daresay, guess, imagine, presume, speculate, suppose, surmise, suspect, suspicion [chiefly dialect]
Words Related to assume

conclude, deduce, gather, infer

hypothecate, hypothesize, theorize

believe, conceive, expect, judge, reckon [chiefly dialect], take, think
Near Antonyms of assume

demonstrate, document, establish, prove, substantiate, validate

ascertain, determine, find out, learn

4 to present a false appearance of

  • she assumed an air of nonchalance even though she was wildly ecstatic she was going on the date
Synonyms of assume

act, affect, bluff, counterfeit, dissemble, fake, feign, pass (for), pretend, profess, put on, sham, simulate
Words Related to assume

dissimulate, impersonate, let on, masquerade, play, playact, pose

forge, imitate

camouflage, conceal, disguise, mask

feint

malinger
Phrases Synonymous with assume

make believe

5 to provide with a paying job

  • assumed as partner by the prestigious law firm
Synonyms of assume

employ, engage, fee [chiefly Scottish], hire, lay on [chiefly British], pay, place, recruit, retain, sign (up or on), take on
Words Related to assume

reemploy, reengage, rehire

apprentice, contract, job, partner, subcontract

enlist

advance, promote, upgrade

keep (on)

headhunt, scout
Near Antonyms of assume

furlough, lay off, lock out
Antonyms of assume

ax (or axe), can, discharge, dismiss, fire, sack

Synonym Discussion of assume

assume, affect, pretend, simulate, feign, counterfeit, sham mean to put on a false or deceptive appearance. assume often implies a justifiable motive rather than an intent to deceive.
    • assumed an air of cheerfulness around the patients
affect implies making a false show of possessing, using, or feeling.
    • affected an interest in art
pretend implies an overt and sustained false appearance.
    • pretended that nothing had happened
simulate suggests a close imitation of the appearance of something.
    • cosmetics that simulate a suntan
feign implies more artful invention than pretend, less specific mimicry than simulate.
    • feigned sickness
counterfeit implies achieving the highest degree of verisimilitude of any of these words.
    • an actor counterfeiting drunkenness
sham implies an obvious falseness that fools only the gullible.
    • shammed a most unconvincing limp

Learn More about assume

  1. See words that rhyme with assume Dictionary: Definition of assume Spanish Central: Translation of assume Nglish: Translation of assume for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of assume for Arabic speakers

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