Surmise
[sə'maɪz] or [sɝ'maɪz]
Definition
(n.) A thought, imagination, or conjecture, which is based upon feeble or scanty evidence; suspicion; guess; as, the surmisses of jealousy or of envy.
(n.) Reflection; thought.
(v. t.) To imagine without certain knowledge; to infer on slight grounds; to suppose, conjecture, or suspect; to guess.
Checker: Vivian
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. a. Imagine, suspect, conjecture, suppose, guess, divine, fancy, believe, think, presume.
n. Conjecture, suspicion, supposition, guess.
Checker: Millicent
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Suspect, imagine, conjecture, guess, fancy, presume, suppose,[SeeSULKY_and_SULLEN], Surmount,[See SUPPOSE_and_SUSPECT]
Checked by Justin
Definition
n. suspicion: conjecture.—v.t. to imagine: to suspect.—adjs. Surmī′sable Surmī′sant.—n. Surmī′ser.
Checker: Lucille
Examples
- It is thought better that his old housekeeper should give him Lady Dedlock's letter, the contents of which no one knows or can surmise. Charles Dickens. Bleak House.
- It is all surmise. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.
- I am under the deepest obligation to you, Mr. Farebrother, said Fred, in a state of uncomfortable surmise. George Eliot. Middlemarch.
- Those are the main facts of the case, stripped of all surmise, and stated as baldly as possible. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.
- Mr. Lorry was already out when he got back, and it was easy to surmise where the good old man was gone. Charles Dickens. A Tale of Two Cities.
- I suppose your father wanted your earnings, said old Mr. Featherstone, with his usual power of unpleasant surmise, when Mary returned to him. George Eliot. Middlemarch.
- It was imputed to very reasonable weariness, and she was thanked and pitied; but she deserved their pity more than she hoped they would ever surmise. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
- The shotgun and rifle, the familiar weapons of the sportsman and the foot-soldier, are not the ancestors of the cannon, as might be surmised. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- Sir Pitt instantly guessed the truth and surmised that Lord Steyne was the person whose life Rawdon wished to take. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- We surmised that he was waiting for somebody else to come in, which occurred shortly after--with the same result. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- She may not have surmised the whole, but her quickness must have penetrated a part. Jane Austen. Emma.
- Harriet had not surmised her own danger, but the idea of it struck her forcibly. Jane Austen. Emma.
- It is not possible but that you must have had some thoughts on the subject, some surmises as to what might be. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
- It was easy to make my further arrangements; for I was troubled with no inquiries--no surmises. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- Emma saw its artifice, and returned to her first surmises. Jane Austen. Emma.
- My surmises did not for a moment class a man of the Count's abilities and social position with the ordinary rank and file of foreign spies. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- Before many more surmises could be indulged in Yeobright had come near; and seeing the hair-cutting group he turned aside to join them. Thomas Hardy. The Return of the Native.
- It was evident that very grave and eventful proceedings were on foot; but various surmises were afloat, respecting their precise character. Charles Dickens. The Pickwick Papers.
- Fanny's heart beat quick, and she felt quite unequal to surmising or soliciting anything more. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
- Mr. Wopsle dropped into ask what was the matter (surmising that a convict had been taken), but came running out in a great hurry. Charles Dickens. Great Expectations.
Checked by Barlow