presume

CEFRC1

/pɹɪˈzjuːm/

verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    verb

    To believe something is true without proof.

  2. 02

    verb

    To act in a way that may seem too confident or rude.

Examples

  • I will not presume to give an opinion.

  • May I presume to tell you that you are wrong?

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
1

Also pronounced

  • /pɹiˈz(j)um/
  • /pɹɪˈz(j)um/

Deep Dive

verb

Extra meanings

  1. To assume or suggest to be true (without proof); to take for granted, to suppose.

  2. To perform, do (something) without authority; to lay claim to without permission.

  3. To be so presumptuous as (to do something) without proper authority or permission [with to (+ infinitive)].

More examples

In context

  • Don't make the decision yourself and presume too much.

  • Paw-prints in the snow allow us to presume a visit from next door's cat.

  • I don't want to pretend to be an authority on this line of business, so I would never presume to tell you how to run your own company.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

I blank you will arrive on time since you have never been late before.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

verb

From Middle English presumen, from Anglo-Norman presumer and its source, Latin praesūmere (“to take beforehand, anticipate”), from prae- + sūmere (“to take”).