Suspect

As a verb, 'suspect' means to have a feeling or belief that someone is guilty of a crime or wrongdoing, or that something is likely to be the case. It can also mean to view with suspicion. As a noun, 'suspect' refers to a person who is believed to be guilty of a crime or offense. It can also refer to something of questionable authenticity or origin. The context dictates the specific shade of meaning.

Suspect meaning with examples

• The detective began to suspect the butler after discovering inconsistencies in his alibi. He started gathering more evidence, carefully examining the household records and interviewing the other staff to determine if there was more reason to suspect.
• I began to suspect that there was something wrong with the engine after hearing a strange rattling sound. After doing some investigating, I felt I had enough to go on and I went to the mechanic so they could suspect what the issue might be.
• The police apprehended the main suspect in the bank robbery, a man matching the description provided by several witnesses. The suspect was taken into custody, where they began questioning him to see if the evidence **suspects** him.
• Due to my poor results on a test, I began to suspect that the teacher would not assign me a good grade on the final exam. The teacher seemed to suspect that I was not doing the homework, and so this seemed likely.