surmise
sur·mise/sɚˈmaɪz/noun, verb
surmise is spelled S-U-R-M-I-S-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables (sur·mise). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 43,187th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, surmise means “Thought, imagination, or conjecture, which may be based upon feeble or scanty evidence; suspicion; guess” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of surmise is surmises.
How many letters and syllables are in surmise?
| Letters | 7: S-U-R-M-I-S-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: sur·mise |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 43,187th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is surmise?
Surmise appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 43,187th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce surmise?
- UK /sɜːˈmaɪz/
- US /sɚˈmaɪz/
Surmise has 2 syllables, split sur·mise in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-surmise.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with surmise?
8 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as surmise from its last stressed vowel (/aɪz/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of surmise
- surmises plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- surmising participle, present
- surmised participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does surmise mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Thought, imagination, or conjecture, which may be based upon feeble or scanty evidence; suspicion; guess.
surmises of jealousy or of envy
- 2
Reflection; thought; posit.
verb
- 1
To imagine or suspect; to conjecture; to posit with contestable premises.
If, as I surmise, you see the ladies this evening, you might mention my intended visit.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Surmise in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Vermutung, Mutmaßung , vermuten, mutmaßen, annehmen |
| Portuguese | suspeita , suspeitar , imaginação |
| French | présumer, supposer, suspecter |
| Spanish | suponer, conjeturar, presumir |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does surmise come from?
From Old French surmis, past participle of surmetre, surmettre (“to accuse”), from sur- (“upon”) + metre (“to put”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).