Definition of assumptionnext
1
as in theory
something taken as being true or factual and used as a starting point for a course of action or reasoning the widespread assumption that violent entertainment leads to violent behavior in children your argument is faulty because it's based on erroneous assumptions

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of assumption Such innovations challenge conventional assumptions about air superiority. Phillips Payson O’Brien, The Atlantic, 18 July 2026 In his first official statement here, Rose seemed to confirm all assumptions about his character. Kansas City Star, 18 July 2026 The assumption for years was that a patient who could not demonstrate awareness did not possess any. Torie Bosch, STAT, 18 July 2026 The assumption that intensifying economic pain alone, without other efforts or sacrifices on Europe’s part, would eventually enable some vague political re-calibration in Moscow has, so far, not been borne out by events. Wesley Alexander Hill, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for assumption
Recent Examples of Synonyms for assumption
Noun
  • One theory is that English and European voices provide an air of authority, even legitimacy, to a sport which, while embraced by millions in America, is still ‘foreign’, certainly when compared to NFL, baseball and basketball.
    Nick Miller, New York Times, 18 July 2026
  • Speculation was rife; one unproven theory was that someone had heated the sensor with a hairdryer.
    Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 17 July 2026
Noun
  • His crippling, his stubborn arrogance and refusal to be humbled, has somehow humanized the spoiled brat king.
    Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
  • Except the brash arrogance that long lived behind the slogan has taken a bit of a hit in recent years.
    Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
Noun
  • That buy-in proves essential to a movie whose premise requires you to suspend every iota of your disbelief, lest its Lanthimos-lite approach to child abduction curdle into something much darker.
    David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 17 July 2026
  • The bakery must have the premises serviced by a pest control operator before reopening, the report said.
    Zareen Syed, Chicago Tribune, 17 July 2026
Noun
  • By vilifying others, Marx could use moral superiority to legally steal from those who had more.
    Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 9 July 2026
  • We are encouraged to indulge our delusions about replacement theory and white male superiority and to surrender to our instincts toward incivility and division.
    Dawn M. Turner, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026
Noun
  • Purchase data confirmed a hypothesis that conventional epidemiology had to generate first, which is useful and which is a different job from finding the vendor.
    John Drake, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
  • For a long time, our leading hypothesis was bullying and violence, but that may be a bit impractical, given their kingdoms are vast networks of tunnels that can stretch for up to three kilometers.
    Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 21 July 2026
Noun
  • One other surprising benefit could be to shift people’s attitudes to climate change, according to recent research.
    Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 17 July 2026
  • As Odysseus wanders from place to place, discovering the foreign customs and attitudes of each one, the story explores the concept of home, asking what kind of civilization is appropriate for an authentic human being.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 July 2026
Noun
  • For many Colombians, the attack on Uribe Turbay shattered the belief that the country had largely left behind the era when presidential candidates routinely became targets of political violence.
    Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 21 July 2026
  • As the league emerges from this summer of soccer, however, there is a strong belief that missing the immediate moment shouldn’t mean missing the bigger picture.
    Paul Tenorio, New York Times, 21 July 2026
Noun
  • Success breeds overconfidence; overconfidence hardens into presumption; and presumption eventually obscures the actual source of momentum.
    Clifford Hudson, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
  • Torres wrote that courts apply a presumption against preemption in areas where states historically exercised their police powers, and gambling regulation has historically been left to states.
    Jon Brodkin, ArsTechnica, 8 July 2026

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“Assumption.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/assumption. Accessed 22 Jul. 2026.

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