SUSPECT

fishy, funny, shady, suspect, suspicious

(adjective) not as expected; “there was something fishy about the accident”; “up to some funny business”; “some definitely queer goings-on”; “a shady deal”; “her motives were suspect”; “suspicious behavior”

defendant, suspect

(noun) a person or institution against whom an action is brought in a court of law; the person being sued or accused

suspect

(noun) someone who is under suspicion

distrust, mistrust, suspect

(verb) regard as untrustworthy; regard with suspicion; have no faith or confidence in

suspect, surmise

(verb) imagine to be the case or true or probable; “I suspect he is a fugitive”; “I surmised that the butler did it”

suspect

(verb) hold in suspicion; believe to be guilty; “The U.S. suspected Bin Laden as the mastermind behind the terrorist attacks”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Verb

suspect (third-person singular simple present suspects, present participle suspecting, simple past and past participle suspected)

(transitive) To imagine or suppose (something) to be true, or to exist, without proof.

(transitive) To distrust or have doubts about (something or someone).

(transitive) To believe (someone) to be guilty.

(intransitive) To have suspicion.

(transitive, obsolete) To look up to; to respect.

Synonyms

• (imagine or suppose to be true): imagine, suppose, think

• (distrust, have doubts about): distrust, doubt

• (believe to be guilty): accuse, point the finger at

Noun

suspect (plural suspects)

A person who is suspected of something, in particular of committing a crime.

Adjective

suspect (comparative more suspect, superlative most suspect)

Viewed with suspicion; suspected.

(nonstandard) Viewing with suspicion; suspecting.

Synonyms

• (viewed with suspicion): dodgy (informal), doubtful, dubious, fishy (informal), suspicious

Anagrams

• cupsets, suscept

Source: Wiktionary

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Sus*pect", a. Etym: [L. suspectus, p.p. of suspicere to look up, admire, esteem, to look at secretly or askance, to mistrust; sub under + specere to look: cf. F. suspect suspected, suspicious. See Spy, and cf. Suspicion.]

1. Suspicious; inspiring distrust. [Obs.] Suspect [was] his face, suspect his word also. Chaucer.

2. Suspected; distrusted. [Obs.] What I can do or offer is suspect. Milton.

Sus*pect", n. Etym: [LL. suspectus. See Suspect, a.]

1. Suspicion. [Obs.] Chaucer. So with suspect, with fear and grief, dismayed. Fairfax.

2. One who, or that which, is suspected; an object of suspicion; -- formerly applied to persons and things; now, only to persons suspected of crime. Bacon.

Sus*pect", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Suspected; p. pr. & vb. n. Suspecting.]

1. To imagine to exist; to have a slight or vague opinion of the existence of, without proof, and often upon weak evidence or no evidence; to mistrust; to surmise; -- commonly used regarding something unfavorable, hurtful, or wrong; as, to suspect the presence of disease. Nothing makes a man suspect much, more than to know little; and therefore men should remedy suspicion by producing to know more. Bacon. From her hand I could suspect no ill. Milton.

2. To imagine to be guilty, upon slight evidence, or without proof; as, to suspect one of equivocation.

3. To hold to be uncertain; to doubt; to mistrust; to distruct; as, to suspect the truth of a story. Addison.

4. To look up to; to respect. [Obs.]

Syn.

– To mistrust; distrust; surmise; doubt.

Sus*pect", v. i.

Definition: To imagine guilt; to have a suspicion or suspicions; to be suspicious. If I suspect without cause, why then make sport at time. Shak.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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