postulate 1 of 2

Definition of postulatenext
as in assumption
something taken as being true or factual and used as a starting point for a course of action or reasoning one of the postulates that the true agnostic rejects is the assumption that it is even possible for us to know whether God exists

Synonyms & Similar Words

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postulate

2 of 2

verb

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 postulate
Noun
The reason, the authors of a new study postulate, has to do with light pollution. New Atlas, 21 Aug. 2025 Now, tangible results have emerged in a field replete with postulates and presumptions. Jenna Ahart, Quanta Magazine, 2 July 2025
Verb
That’s why Nobel Prize-winning chemist Christian Anfinsen postulated in 1972 that DNA alone should fully determine the final structure a protein takes. Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 28 Nov. 2025 Based on their findings, researchers postulate that Homo sapiens reacted better to lead exposure evolutionarily than Neanderthals, a species that were close relatives to Homo sapiens and that went extinct around 40,000 years ago. Mason Leath, ABC News, 16 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for postulate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for postulate
Noun
  • And even the Panthers, Inter Miami and Canes football had endured long dry spells off the national radar until recently, while all the while the Heat relentlessly won, relentlessly competed, the consistent success taken for granted by the mere assumption of it — the standard Pat Riley built here.
    Greg Cote February 25, Miami Herald, 25 Feb. 2026
  • If California is serious about safety, the next governor must ground their approach in evidence instead of fear, slogans, media hype, or outdated assumptions.
    Jose Bernal, Oc Register, 24 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Helen gives the gang a call, saying Billie is at the clinic.
    Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Feb. 2026
  • The company also says the battery can charge in under 10 minutes and last 100,000 cycles.
    Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 23 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The tobacco trials — which took place over decades but began to shift in favor of plaintiffs in the ’90s — similarly saw various types of plaintiffs file a wave of lawsuits, contributing to the release of internal documents and testing new legal theories.
    Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 22 Feb. 2026
  • Analysts offer competing, somewhat contradictory theories about the software selloff.
    Daniel de Visé, USA Today, 22 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Many agencies confirmed figures with CNN directly, but when agencies did not respond, CNN used the most recent information available on their websites or other government websites and assumed five-day weeks when calculating the approximate number of training days.
    Blake Ellis, CNN Money, 27 Feb. 2026
  • But equal time itself is narrower than many assume.
    Jay Caruso, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • So, one hypothesis would be that your friend’s toddler got sick, and those invaders killed off a lot of his beneficial gut microbes.
    Adam Cohen, Oklahoman, 17 Feb. 2026
  • However, instead of being a dead end for the Chrysalis hypothesis, the simulations opened another door, and the key was another moon of Saturn, Hyperion, which orbits just beyond Titan.
    Keith Cooper, Space.com, 17 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Philip remains presumed innocent unless and until proved guilty in court.
    Josh Davis, Baltimore Sun, 23 Feb. 2026
  • Nester also told jurors the prosecution must prove every element beyond a reasonable doubt and emphasized that Richins is presumed innocent.
    Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 23 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Seeing, hearing is believing With one final grunt, Walker Buehler hopped off the bullpen mound and headed toward Field 2 at the Peoria Sports Complex to throw his first live batting practice.
    Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Feb. 2026
  • She is believed to have been taken against her will, and officials have released footage of a masked person on her front porch from the night of her disappearance.
    Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 22 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Drawing on social psychology and burnout research, Rhodes and her coauthors hypothesized that offloading time-consuming, high-stakes accounting responsibilities could meaningfully reduce strain on CFOs.
    Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026
  • That fact, plus certain skeletal traits, led some scientists to hypothesize Spinosaurus was fully aquatic, an open-water swimmer and diving pursuit predator in a marine setting.
    Reuters, NBC news, 20 Feb. 2026

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“Postulate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/postulate. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.

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