supposed
Americanadjective
-
merely thought or alleged to be such, on a very questionable basis; imagined.
When one tries to understand more about these supposed gains, they turn out to be nothing more than clever rhetoric.
-
accepted or believed to be so, without certain knowledge.
This is the supposed site of the ancient temple, based on recent archeological finds.
-
assumed for the sake of argument; hypothetical.
Given a supposed scenario where you see two students fighting in the schoolyard, how do you handle it?
verb
idioms
adjective
-
(prenominal) presumed to be true without certain knowledge
his supposed date of birth
-
(prenominal) believed to be true on slight grounds; highly doubtful
the supposed existence of ghosts
-
expected or obliged (to)
I'm supposed to be there at nine
-
expected or obliged not (to)
you're not supposed to walk on the grass
Other Word Forms
- nonsupposed adjective
- supposedly adverb
- unsupposed adjective
Etymology
Origin of supposed
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It’s supposed to use these profits to pay for imports and other economic needs.
The faux-anchor admitted that he wasn’t knowledgeable on Iran before throwing to a clip of a supposed expert.
From Salon
Judy Trotter was supposed to return to London from her holiday on Saturday, but was told all flights were cancelled when she arrived at the airport.
From BBC
Critics are already asking what the goals are, particularly given the supposed destruction of Tehran's nuclear facilities months ago.
From Barron's
Brokers said a loaded supertanker chartered by Shell that was supposed to cross the Strait of Hormuz had idled, while another was racing through the strait en route to South Korea.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
