Definition of supposednext

supposed

2 of 2

verb

past tense of suppose
1
as in estimated
to decide the size, amount, number, or distance of (something) without actual measurement if we suppose a minimum profit of $10,000 from the charity auction, we should be able to pay for the family's medical expenses

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
3
4

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 supposed
Adjective
But clearly any supposed rivalry between the legendary bands is water under the bridge. Peter Gicas, Entertainment Weekly, 14 July 2026
Verb
On the other side of the ball, Kazuma Okamoto was not supposed to be the best performer in the Jays’ offensive machine. Jayson Stark, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026 The Giants totally dominated the game flow, keeping the ball out of the hands of Dak Prescott and what’s supposed to be a powerful offense, and running 16 more plays than Dallas. Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Sep. 2026 Still, these were never even supposed to be binding philosophical truths in the first place. Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2026 The best jeans for tall women that actually hit where they’re supposed to can be tricky to find. Bianca Kratky, Glamour, 14 Sep. 2026 Even within those strict parameters, the researchers discovered that about 1,200 AI agents that were not supposed to be communicating with each other used a covert message board. Shaun Raviv, CBS News, 10 Sep. 2026 You’re supposed to kick the high school player in the butt in anything. Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026 Reformation is doing all the things that it’s supposed to — but still waiting for Wall Street to really take interest. Evan Clark, Footwear News, 10 Sep. 2026 Which was a problem, because farmer checkoff dollars weren’t supposed to be used for political lobbying — yet here was a lobbying group making money by being the Pork Board’s primary contractor. Kenny Torrella, Vox, 9 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for supposed
Adjective
  • The presumed reasoning behind why the film was ignored is multilayered.
    Marcus Jones, IndieWire, 8 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Around 23,126 people died of alcohol-attributable cancer in 2023, up from 11,361 in 1990, according to the study, which estimated the deaths using a global database of disease mortality and population-level estimates of alcohol exposure.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 12 Sep. 2026
  • Nigerians are on track to spend $34 billion on healthcare this year, nearly double the amount spent five years ago, a report by the Health Federation of Nigeria, a non-profit coalition of private sector providers, estimated.
    Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 11 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • His statement did not admit any guilt on the part of the franchise — which Silver assumed could be because there are other investigations into the Clippers that don’t involve the NBA.
    Brian Mahoney, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Many assumed something like this was coming and built so the specific shift wouldn’t matter.
    Dimitri Akhrin, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said Monday in a post on X that the Polish army recovered what was believed to be a Russian military drone from the Baltic Sea near the coastal village of Jaroslawiec.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 15 Sep. 2026
  • At issue is territory claimed by both that is believed to contain large, exploitable amounts of natural gas and other hydrocarbons.
    ABC News, ABC News, 15 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • The prevalence of starwashing does not mean that all extraterrestrial endeavors should be scorned, said The Cool Down.
    Devika Rao, TheWeek, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Iliman Ndiaye, another City debutant, showed flashes of promise, while Gianluigi Donnarumma made a couple of big saves when needed (the less said about the moment the Italian nearly let the ball go under his foot and over the goal-line, the better).
    Stuart James, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Adjective
  • His managerial shortcomings have been apparent at times, and his expiring contract made everything seemingly less complicated.
    Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Eco effort The Rosewood group has a green initiative that includes energy conservation, prioritizing sustainability, and embracing a sense of place, but specifics about the Vienna hotel weren’t apparent.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • One more month of inflation data – September – must be known before a precise figure for the 2027 cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security benefits can be calculated and released.
    Susan Tompor, Freep.com, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The idea came from James Fishback, who calculated taxpaying households could receive $5,000 based on Musk’s stated goal of saving $2 trillion.
    Isaac Arnsdorf, Washington Post, 10 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Kuper even guessed Mannion could game plan and call a game just for rushing.
    Zach Berman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Each player secretly writes down a guess, and players who pick correctly gets points equal to the number of players who guessed correctly.
    Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 8 Sep. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Supposed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/supposed. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster