Suppose

How to spell suppose

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce suppose

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does suppose mean?

1. verbTo assume or believe something to be true, often without proof.

Suppose in a sentence

• I suppose the meeting will run late again today.

• We can only suppose that the parcel was lost in transit.

Where does suppose come from?

Language of origin: French

This word arrived in English in the 1300s from the Old French supposer, meaning 'to assume' or 'to place under'. The French form was built on the Latin supponere, which literally meant 'to put underneath', combining sub 'under' with ponere 'to place'. The 'put under' image shifted naturally toward 'to lay down as a basis for argument', and from there to the everyday sense of assuming something to be true. The French verb ending in -poser influenced the modern spelling, which is why the word ends in -pose rather than the -pone you might expect from the Latin. The same ponere root sits inside a whole family of English words such as 'propose', 'compose', and 'oppose', and the doubled p in suppose comes straight from sub colliding with the p of ponere.

How the word is built

• sup- (variant of sub-: under)
• pose (to place, from Latin ponere via French poser)