suppose


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sup·pose

 (sə-pōz′)
v. sup·posed, sup·pos·ing, sup·pos·es
v.tr.
1. To assume to be true or real for the sake of argument or explanation: Suppose we win the lottery.
2.
a. To believe, especially on uncertain or tentative grounds: Scientists supposed that large dinosaurs lived in swamps.
b. To consider to be probable or likely: I suppose it will rain.
3. To imply as an antecedent condition; presuppose: "Patience must suppose pain" (Samuel Johnson).
4. To consider as a suggestion: Suppose we dine together.
v.intr.
To imagine; conjecture.

[Middle English supposen, from Old French supposer, alteration (influenced by poser, to place) of Medieval Latin suppōnere, from Latin, to put under : sub-, sub- + pōnere, to place; see apo- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

suppose

(səˈpəʊz)
vb (tr; may take a clause as object)
1. to presume (something) to be true without certain knowledge: I suppose he meant to kill her.
2. to consider as a possible suggestion for the sake of discussion, elucidation, etc; postulate: suppose that he wins the election.
3. (of theories, propositions, etc) to imply the inference or assumption (of): your policy supposes full employment.
[C14: from Old French supposer, from Medieval Latin suppōnere, from Latin: to substitute, from sub- + pōnere to put]
supˈposable adj
supˈposer n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

sup•pose

(səˈpoʊz)

v. -posed, -pos•ing. v.t.
1. to assume (something), as for the sake of argument: Suppose you won a million dollars in the lottery.
2. to consider (something) as a possibility or plan: Suppose we wait until tomorrow.
3. to believe or assume as true; take for granted.
4. to think or hold as an opinion: What do you suppose he will do?
5. to require logically; imply; presuppose.
6. (used in the passive) to expect or require (fol. by an infinitive verb): The machine is not supposed to make noise. She was supposed to meet me here.
v.i.
7. to assume something; presume; think.
[1275–1325; Middle English < Old French supposer=sup- sup- + poser to pose1; compare Medieval Latin suppōnere to suppose, Latin: to substitute, place below]
sup•pos′er, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

suppose

1. 'suppose'

If you suppose that something is true, you think it is probably true.

I suppose it was difficult.
I suppose he left fairly recently.
2. 'don't suppose'

Instead of saying that you suppose something is not true, you usually say that you don't suppose that it is true.

I don't suppose anyone cares much whether he stays or goes.
I don't suppose you've ever seen anything like this before!

You can use I don't suppose as a very polite way of asking or suggesting something.

I don't suppose you'd like to come out for a drink?
3. 'I suppose so'

If someone says that something is true, or asks you whether something is true, you can say 'I suppose so' as a way of agreeing with them or saying 'yes' but showing that you are not very certain or enthusiastic.

'It was good, wasn't it?' – 'I suppose so.'
'Shall we go' – 'I suppose so.'

Be Careful!
Don't say 'I suppose it'.

4. 'I suppose not'

Similarly, you can agree with a negative statement or question in a way that shows you are not very certain by saying 'I suppose not'.

'It doesn't often happen.' – 'No, I suppose not.'
'You don't want this, do you?' – 'I suppose not.'
5. 'suppose' used as a conjunction

You can use suppose as a conjunction when you are considering a possible situation or action and trying to think what effects it would have.

Suppose we don't tell anyone, and somebody finds out about it.
Suppose you had a million dollars, what would you do?

Supposing can be used in a similar way.

Supposing something should go wrong, what would you do then?
Supposing he's right, it could be very serious.
6. 'be supposed to'

If something is supposed to be done, it should be done because of a rule, instruction, or custom.

You are supposed to report it to the police as soon as possible.
I'm not supposed to talk to you about this.

If something is supposed to be true, people generally think that it is true.

The house was supposed to be haunted by a ghost.
She was supposed to be a very good actor.

Be Careful!
Don't say that something 'is suppose to' be done or be true. Don't say, for example, 'The house is suppose to be haunted'.

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

suppose


Past participle: supposed
Gerund: supposing

Imperative
suppose
suppose
Present
I suppose
you suppose
he/she/it supposes
we suppose
you suppose
they suppose
Preterite
I supposed
you supposed
he/she/it supposed
we supposed
you supposed
they supposed
Present Continuous
I am supposing
you are supposing
he/she/it is supposing
we are supposing
you are supposing
they are supposing
Present Perfect
I have supposed
you have supposed
he/she/it has supposed
we have supposed
you have supposed
they have supposed
Past Continuous
I was supposing
you were supposing
he/she/it was supposing
we were supposing
you were supposing
they were supposing
Past Perfect
I had supposed
you had supposed
he/she/it had supposed
we had supposed
you had supposed
they had supposed
Future
I will suppose
you will suppose
he/she/it will suppose
we will suppose
you will suppose
they will suppose
Future Perfect
I will have supposed
you will have supposed
he/she/it will have supposed
we will have supposed
you will have supposed
they will have supposed
Future Continuous
I will be supposing
you will be supposing
he/she/it will be supposing
we will be supposing
you will be supposing
they will be supposing
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been supposing
you have been supposing
he/she/it has been supposing
we have been supposing
you have been supposing
they have been supposing
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been supposing
you will have been supposing
he/she/it will have been supposing
we will have been supposing
you will have been supposing
they will have been supposing
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been supposing
you had been supposing
he/she/it had been supposing
we had been supposing
you had been supposing
they had been supposing
Conditional
I would suppose
you would suppose
he/she/it would suppose
we would suppose
you would suppose
they would suppose
Past Conditional
I would have supposed
you would have supposed
he/she/it would have supposed
we would have supposed
you would have supposed
they would have supposed
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Verb1.suppose - express a supposition; "Let us say that he did not tell the truth"; "Let's say you had a lot of money--what would you do?"
speculate - talk over conjecturally, or review in an idle or casual way and with an element of doubt or without sufficient reason to reach a conclusion; "We were speculating whether the President had to resign after the scandal"
2.suppose - expect, believe, or suppose; "I imagine she earned a lot of money with her new novel"; "I thought to find her in a bad state"; "he didn't think to find her in the kitchen"; "I guess she is angry at me for standing her up"
anticipate, expect - regard something as probable or likely; "The meteorologists are expecting rain for tomorrow"
suspect - hold in suspicion; believe to be guilty; "The U.S. suspected Bin Laden as the mastermind behind the terrorist attacks"
3.suppose - to believe especially on uncertain or tentative grounds; "Scientists supposed that large dinosaurs lived in swamps"
reconstruct, retrace, construct - reassemble mentally; "reconstruct the events of 20 years ago"
anticipate, expect - regard something as probable or likely; "The meteorologists are expecting rain for tomorrow"
formulate, explicate, develop - elaborate, as of theories and hypotheses; "Could you develop the ideas in your thesis"
4.suppose - take for granted or as a given; suppose beforehand; "I presuppose that you have done your work"
assume, presume, take for granted - take to be the case or to be true; accept without verification or proof; "I assume his train was late"
postulate, posit - take as a given; assume as a postulate or axiom; "He posited three basic laws of nature"
premiss, premise - take something as preexisting and given
5.suppose - require as a necessary antecedent or precondition; "This step presupposes two prior ones"
logic - the branch of philosophy that analyzes inference
imply - suggest as a logically necessary consequence; in logic
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

suppose

verb
1. imagine, believe, consider, conclude, fancy, conceive, conjecture, postulate, hypothesize Where do you suppose he's got to?
2. think, imagine, expect, judge, assume, guess (informal, chiefly U.S. & Canad.), calculate (U.S. dialect), presume, take for granted, infer, conjecture, surmise, dare say, opine, presuppose, take as read The problem was more complex than he supposed.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

suppose

verb
1. To take for granted without proof:
Informal: reckon.
2. To draw an inference on the basis of inconclusive evidence or insufficient information:
3. To regard in an appraising way:
4. To oblige to do or not do by force of authority, propriety, or custom:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
لِنَفْرِضيَظُنُّيَفْرِض
předpokládata co kdybydomnívat se
antageformodegå ud frahvad hvis nutro
olettaaotaksuaarvella
pretpostaviti
feltételeztegyük fel
gera ráî fyrirhalda, álítahvernig væri aî
想定する
가정하다
daryti prielaidąpriderėti
domātkā būtu, japieņemt, kašķistuzskatīt
domnevatimeniti
förmodaförutsättaanta
สมมุติ
diyelim kiedelim/yapalımeğerhadisanmak
cho là

suppose

[səˈpəʊz]
vt
(= think likely) to suppose (that) ... → supposer que ...
I suppose that's what happened → Je suppose que c'est ce qui s'est passé.
I don't suppose she'll come → Je suppose qu'elle ne viendra pas.
BUT Cela m'étonnerait qu'elle vienne.
(= imagine) to suppose (that) ... → supposer que ...
Suppose you won the lottery → Supposez que vous gagniez à la loterie.
It was worse than she'd supposed
BUT C'était pire que ce qu'elle avait imaginé.
(= expressing uncertainty) to suppose (that) ... → supposer que ...
I suppose I'd better do some work → Je suppose que je ferais mieux de travailler.
... , I suppose → ... je suppose
He's about sixty, I suppose → Il a une soixantaine d'années je suppose.
I suppose so → je suppose que oui
I suppose not → je suppose que non
to be supposed to do sth (= be required to) → être censé(e) faire qch
You're supposed to show your passport → On est censé montrer son passeport.
You're not supposed to do that → Vous n'êtes pas censé faire cela.
You are supposed to report it to the police as soon as possible → Vous êtes censé le déclarer à la police le plus vite possible.
to be supposed to do sth (= be expected to) → être supposé(e) faire qch
The first debate was supposed to have been held on Tuesday → Le premier débat était supposé s'être tenu mardi.
to be supposed to do sth (= be thought to) → être censé(e) faire qch
He's supposed to be an expert → Il est censé être un expert.
(introducing request, question, suggestion)
I don't suppose you could tell me where James Street is? → Pourriez-vous m'indiquer où se trouve James street?
Do you suppose he's telling the truth? → Pensez-vous qu'il dise la vérité?
Suppose we get together for a chat sometime? → Et si nous nous rencontrions pour bavarder un des ces jours?
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

suppose

vt
(= imagine)sich (dat)vorstellen; (= assume)annehmen; let us suppose we are living in the 8th centurystellen wir uns einmal vor, wir lebten im 8. Jahrhundert; let us suppose that X equals 3angenommen, X sei gleich 3; even supposing it were or was true(sogar) angenommen, dass es wahr ist, angenommen, es sei wahr; always supposing he comesimmer vorausgesetzt, (dass) er kommt; suppose they could see us now!wenn sie uns jetzt sehen könnten!
(= believe, think)annehmen, denken; I suppose he’ll comeich nehme an, (dass) er kommt, er wird wohl or vermutlich kommen; I don’t suppose he’ll comeich glaube kaum, dass er kommt; I suppose he won’t comeich denke, er wird nicht kommen, er wird wohl nicht kommen; I suppose that’s the best thing, that’s the best thing, I supposedas ist or wäre vermutlich das Beste; he’s rich, I supposeer muss wohl reich sein; you’re coming, I suppose?ich nehme an, du kommst?; I don’t suppose you could lend me a pound?Sie könnten mir nicht zufällig ein Pfund leihen?; do you suppose we could have dinner some evening?meinen Sie, wir könnten einmal abends zusammen essen gehen?; will he be coming? — I suppose sokommt er? — ich denke or glaube schon; you ought to be leaving — I suppose sodu solltest jetzt gehenstimmt wohl; don’t you agree with me? — I suppose sobist du da nicht meiner Meinung? — na ja, schon; I don’t suppose soich glaube kaum; isn’t he coming? — I suppose notkommt er nicht? — ich glaube kaum; so you see, it can’t be true — I suppose notda siehst du selbst, es kann nicht stimmen — du wirst wohl recht haben; he can’t very well refuse, can he? — I suppose noter kann wohl kaum ablehnen, oder? — eigentlich nicht; I never supposed him (to be) a heroich habe ihn nie für einen Helden gehalten; he is generally supposed to be richer gilt als reich; he’s supposed to be cominger soll (angeblich) kommen; and he’s supposed to be an expert!und der soll (angeblich) (ein) Experte sein!
(modal use in pass: = ought) to be supposed to do somethingetw tun sollen; he’s the one who’s supposed to do iter müsste es eigentlich tun; you’re supposed to be in beddu solltest eigentlich im Bett sein, du gehörst eigentlich ins Bett; he isn’t supposed to find outer darf es nicht erfahren; you’re not supposed to (do that)das darfst du nicht tun; I am supposed to start work here todayich soll hier heute anfangen; you’re supposed to report to the policeSie müssen sich bei der Polizei melden
(in imper: = I suggest) suppose we have a go?warum versuchen wir es nicht einmal?; suppose we buy it?wie wäre es, wenn wir es kauften?; suppose you have a wash?wie wärs, wenn du dich mal wäschst?
(= presuppose)voraussetzen; that supposes unlimited resourcesdas setzt unbegrenzte Vorräte voraus
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

suppose

[səˈpəʊz] vt
a. (assume, believe) I suppose she'll comesuppongo che verrà
I don't suppose she'll come → non credo che venga
I suppose she won't come → penso che non verrà
I suppose so/not → credo di sì/di no
I don't suppose so → non credo
you're going to accept, I suppose? → accetti, immagino?
I don't suppose you could lend me £10?, I suppose you couldn't lend me £10? → non potresti per caso prestarmi dieci sterlina?
he's supposed to be an expert → dicono che sia un esperto, passa per un esperto
b. (assume as hypothesis) → supporre + sub, mettere + sub
let us suppose that ... → supponiamo che..., mettiamo che...
but just suppose he's right → ma supponi or metti che abbia ragione
even supposing (that) it were true → anche nel caso (che) fosse vero
always supposing (that) he comes → ammesso e non concesso che venga
suppose or supposing it rains, what shall we do? → metti che piova, cosa facciamo?
suppose she doesn't come? → e se non venisse?
c. (in passive, ought) to be supposed to do sthessere tenuto/a a fare qc
you're not supposed to do that → non bisogna farlo
d. (in imperative, I suggest) suppose you do it now?e se lo facessi adesso?
suppose we change the subject? → e se parlassimo d'altro?
e. (presuppose) → presupporre
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

suppose

(səˈpəuz) verb
1. to think probable; to believe or guess. Who do you suppose telephoned today?; `I suppose you'll be going to the meeting?' `Yes, I suppose so / No, I don't suppose so.'; Do you suppose she'll win?; `Surely her statement can't be correct?' `No, I suppose not'.
2. to accept as true for the sake of argument; to consider as a possibility. (Let's) suppose we each had $100 to spend; Suppose the train's late – what shall we do?
3. used to make a suggestion or give an order in a polite way. Suppose we have lunch now!; Suppose you make us a cup of tea!
supˈposing
if. Supposing she doesn't come, what shall we do?
be supposed to (be/doetc)
1. to have the reputation of (being etc). He's supposed to be the best doctor in the town.
2. to be expected or obliged to (do something etc). You're supposed to make your own bed every morning.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

suppose

يَظُنُّ předpokládat formode annehmen υποθέτω suponer olettaa supposer pretpostaviti supporre 想定する 가정하다 veronderstellen anta przypuścić supor предполагать förmoda สมมุติ varsaymak cho là 假设
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

suppose

vt. suponer.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
References in classic literature ?
And you may suppose that I have repeated the remainder of your tale of horrors.
I suppose I might almost class my devotion to English reviews among my literary passions, but it was of very short lease, not beyond a year or two at the most.
But I must here remark that I do not suppose that the process ever goes on so regularly as is represented in the diagram, though in itself made somewhat irregular.
The first time a bird builds a nest, we can hardly suppose it knows that there will be eggs to be laid in it, or that it will sit on the eggs, or that they will hatch into young birds.
Striking up a swap or a bargain, I suppose. Bargain?
the elder brother is very sickly, I suppose you would not ask above fifty thousand pounds."
"Fanny is in her own room, I suppose," said he:--"I will go to her presently, for I am sure she will not have the least objection in the world to seeing YOU.-- Very far from it, indeed.
I had long before remarked that, in relation to practice, it is sometimes necessary to adopt, as if above doubt, opinions which we discern to be highly uncertain, as has been already said; but as I then desired to give my attention solely to the search after truth, I thought that a procedure exactly the opposite was called for, and that I ought to reject as absolutely false all opinions in regard to which I could suppose the least ground for doubt, in order to ascertain whether after that there remained aught in my belief that was wholly indubitable.
"I suppose we'll stay a little while to rest the mare," said Marilla, "but I promised Matthew I'd be home early.
Suppose you could get nobody but a toad to do it, how would you like that?"
Yet, I think, none treated him better than a dog, unless it was Ben Gunn, who was still terribly afraid of his old quartermaster, or myself, who had really something to thank him for; although for that matter, I suppose, I had reason to think even worse of him than anybody else, for I had seen him meditating a fresh treachery upon the plateau.
Suppose 'm you take 'm me along canoe, washee-washee, me give 'm you fella boy two stick tobacco."