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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surmising
Verb
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The show kept audiences guessing all summer long until, at the beginning of season 10, it was revealed that the entirety of season nine was Pam's dream.—
Victoria Edel,
PEOPLE,
12 May 2026 -
The Industrialization of Financial Crime Scammers no longer sit in isolation, guessing passwords or stealing physical credit cards.—
Ethan Stone,
USA Today,
11 May 2026
Verb
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One defendant is accused of assuming the identity of at least four residents in Maryland with the fraudulent intent to obtain payments valued at over $1,500 that were disbursed from the state’s Medicaid program.—
Brendan Nordstrom,
Baltimore Sun,
11 May 2026
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The diagrams of passengers pulling out floatation devices and assuming crash position were presented with a crisp, legible aesthetic similar to the look of Ikezoe’s paintings.—
Alex Greenberger,
ARTnews.com,
11 May 2026
Verb
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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
Verb
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Invitees were hoping and suspecting McCartney might pop in for a wave or a comment before or after the listening session.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
17 Apr. 2026
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Surely seventh graders are capable of understanding that people need to get along with one another, rather than living in a constant state of alarm, suspecting that others mean us harm.—
Judith Martin,
Dallas Morning News,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Because the stories are going to keep coming out, speculating what’s in there.—
NBC news,
NBC news,
10 May 2026
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After years of college basketball fans speculating over whether the two were dating, Bueckers confirmed their relationship in a July 2025 interview with WAG Talk.—
Brendan Le,
PEOPLE,
8 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Surmising.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surmising. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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