Synonyms of suspects

suspects 1 of 2

noun

plural of suspect

as in defendants

Related Words

• defendants
• culprits
• criminals
• detainees
• offenders
• arrestees
• fish
• accomplices
• accused
• lawbreakers
• principals
• crooks
• outlaws
• misdemeanants
• miscreants
• malefactors
• perpetrators
• convicts
• desperadoes
• perps
• villains
• jailbirds
• trespassers
• wrongdoers
• thugs
• gangsters
• hoodlums
• transgressors
• sinners
• mobsters
• hooligans
• racketeers
• evildoers
• misdoers
• misfeasors
• gallows birds
• button men
• blackhanders

Dissimilar Words

• lawmen
• gangbusters

suspects

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of suspect

1

as in guesses

to form an opinion from little or no evidence

we suspected that the runaway was a little younger than the 16 she claimed to be—more like 13

Synonyms & Similar Words

• guesses
• assumes
• supposes
• thinks
• suspicions
• presumes
• speculates
• surmises
• imagines
• conjectures
• believes
• daresays
• deduces
• infers
• concludes
• expects
• hypothesizes
• theorizes
• gathers
• judges
• hypothecates
• conceives
• reckons
• takes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• proves
• demonstrates
• documents
• establishes
• determines
• learns
• validates
• substantiates
• finds out
• ascertains

2

as in doubts

to have no trust or confidence in

I suspected him from the moment he said he was an old friend of my sister's, since I probably would have heard about him

Synonyms & Similar Words

• doubts
• questions
• distrusts
• mistrusts
• misdoubts
• disbelieves
• discounts
• negates
• discredits

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• depends (on or upon)
• banks (on or upon)
• trusts
• relies (on or upon)
• counts (on or upon)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of suspects

Noun

Two suspects hit several businesses in the Fairfax District early Tuesday morning, with one suspect in police custody. — Julie Sharp, CBS News, 6 May 2026

Deem fired his weapon at the suspects, but no injuries were reported, and the disturbance suspect has not been apprehended. — Jade Jackson, IndyStar, 25 Nov. 2025

One of the suspects was found guilty of first-degree murder in June 2021, among a list of other charges, while the other suspect pleaded guilty in early 2020 to 17 counts, including murder charges. — Ray Sanchez, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2025

Verb

His family suspects an operation soon after birth to treat hydrocephalus, which causes swelling in the brain, or a blood transfusion just over a year later may have carried the virus. — Betsy Joles, NPR, 2 Sep. 2026

The exact reason is still unclear, but Kostrna’s team suspects the issue may stem from how each device’s algorithms are calculated. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 2 Sep. 2026

Eaton suspects Parton wouldn’t have issued instructions for copying her routine. — Angela Haupt, Time, 26 Aug. 2026

As a result, Kaspersky suspects the ultimate goal was to use the infected head units to display ads and faking interactions with them to commit online ad fraud. — Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 21 Aug. 2026

But a cousin suspects foul play and wants further investigation. — ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026

Trafford suspects the next new signing at Leeds will generate the same kind of excitement, the next dopamine hit. — Beren Cross, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026

Anna suspects the grave is for Sarah, Jake’s wife and the mother of his kids. — Sabrina Reed, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2026

But no one suspects Becca, who walks away with an additional seven points, leaping from a tie for last place (with Izzy and Erika) to a clean win, and the fanciest, courtliest, most butterfly-est wig of them all. — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 11 Aug. 2026