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

Balasubramanian suspects that even this kind of radical model doesn’t go far enough. — Quanta Magazine, 25 Sep. 2026

British Columbia suspects that OpenAI actually wanted to avoid drawing a hard line that would require OpenAI to report more violent users to the police and expose the public to more of the real-world threats that chatbots could pose. — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 22 Sep. 2026

The team suspects the increase in the rate and intensity of earthquakes shows that Earth’s crust did not return to normal after the final test in 2017, but instead seismicity increased as at least two preexisting faults became active, Kim said. — Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 17 Sep. 2026

Authorities encouraged anyone who suspects a driver is impaired to call the department at 916-714-5111 or 911. — Camryn Dadey, Sacbee.com, 16 Sep. 2026

Kehler suspects his hopes for expanding business in Canada are stalling because residents there resent the way the president and members of his Cabinet treat their country, a longtime ally. — ABC News, 15 Sep. 2026

James suspects opponents don’t believe the Zee-Bees can win another way. — Steve Reaven, Chicago Tribune, 11 Sep. 2026

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