SURMISING Synonyms: 34 Similar and Opposite Words

surmising

verb

present participle of surmise

as in guessing

to form an opinion from little or no evidence we surmised that she had purchased the apple pie since there was a bakery box on the kitchen counter

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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 surmising During this period, this Simpsons episode circulated on social media (with a few digital modifications), with various media outlets surmising that the series had predicted these events. — Dan Snierson, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for surmising

Verb

Kubiak apparently wants to keep Cousins and rookie Fernando Mendoza guessing about their status on the depth chart.

— Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2026
The Chiefs’ running game was so listless that defenses ignored fake handoffs and instead retreated to defend the pass, knowing the consequences of guessing wrong weren’t all that punishing anyway.

— Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of guessing

Verb

Branch has similarities to Xavier Worthy, and that gives him the chance to be another WR4 with weekly boom upside … assuming Tagovailoa eats some spinach for that arm or Michael Penix returns under center.

— Jake Ciely, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Larry Berg is just months away from assuming his new role as Major League Soccer’s next commissioner.

— Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of assuming

Verb

More recently, other experts have advised American farmers to go all out growing soybeans, supposing they will be needed by the Chinese or somebody.

— Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
Even supposing the pledges in the 1990s documents amounted to a crime, the legal deadline for bringing mortgage fraud charges has expired.

— Aysha Bagchi, USA Today, 8 Dec. 2025

Definition of supposing

Verb

In the r/Solidcore subreddit, one expressed frustration with the fitness studio’s lack of communication after suspecting their ringworm infection came from the Downtown Brooklyn location.

— Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 14 July 2026
Oceanside Police Captain Nick Nunez told KNSD that officers are not suspecting foul play.

— Adam England, PEOPLE, 14 July 2026

Definition of suspecting

Verb

Frank Sierawski didn't set out to discover a multibillion-dollar market for speculating on when people with life insurance policies will die.

— Vito Emanuel, NPR, 25 Aug. 2026
That’s not all—sources were even speculating whether Harry and Meghan would stay together.

— Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of speculating

Browse Nearby Words

surmises

surmising

surmount

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“Surmising.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surmising. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of surmising

verb

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