: a thought or idea based on scanty evidence : conjecture
surmised; surmising
Synonyms
Examples of surmise in a Sentence
Noun
my surmise is that the couple's “good news” is the announcement that they are going to have a baby
Verb
We can only surmise what happened.
He must have surmised that I was not interested.
Recent Examples on the Web
Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2024
But watching it last night, I was struck with a wild surmise about the characters’ potential origin.
—Vulture, 22 Dec. 2023
Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2024
Reportedly, Eastwood had offered the role to Steve McQueen, but McQueen turned it down, accurately surmising that the best role in the movie belonged to the female lead.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 6 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for surmise 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Like the extended music video surmises, Lopez’s search for love in all forms is born out of not feeling loved enough as a child.
—Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2024
But watching it last night, I was struck with a wild surmise about the characters’ potential origin.
—Vulture, 22 Dec. 2023
Verb
That cap was not discarded, Ross surmised, because Jose Ibarra could not see that there was actually blood on it.
—Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2024
Reportedly, Eastwood had offered the role to Steve McQueen, but McQueen turned it down, accurately surmising that the best role in the movie belonged to the female lead.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 6 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for surmise
Articles Related to surmise
Dictionary Entries Near surmise
Cite this Entry
“Surmise.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surmise. Accessed 3 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
surmise
2 of 2 noun
sur·mise
sər-ˈmīz 
ˈsər-ˌmīz
: a thought or idea based on little evidence : conjecture
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share