Surmise
/sərˈmaɪz/noun
To infer or form an idea about something without having complete evidence; also, an uncertain inference.
Did you know?In medieval Anglo-French legal language, a surmise could be an allegation or assertion submitted to a court, before its modern sense softened into a tentative inference.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
supermittere
“To put over, place above, or send over; formed from super, “over,” and mittere, “to send or put.””
12th–13th Century
Old French
surmettre
“To allege, assert, or put forward; literally, to place or set over.”
13th–14th Century
Anglo-French
surmise
“An allegation, accusation, or claim presented for consideration.”
14th Century
Middle English
surmise
“A statement or suspicion put forward without full proof.”
Modern English
English
surmise
“To infer or speculate from incomplete evidence; also, the resulting conjecture.”