How to use suspect in a sentence

40 example sentences · verb, noun, adjective

Suspect means to imagine or suppose (something) to be true, or to exist, without proof. Example: “I suspect him of being the thief.”

Examples of suspect by meaning

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

to suspect the presence of disease
He was very easy to talk to with those long clown lines in his pale face, a natural goon, born rather too early she suspected.1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 5, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC
The dispatches revealed details of corruption and kleptocracy that many Tunisians suspected, but could not prove, and would cite as they took to the streets.2013 June 7, Gary Younge, “Hypocrisy lies at heart of Manning prosecution”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 18

verbTo distrust or have doubts about (something or someone).

to suspect the truth of a story

verbTo believe (someone) to be guilty.

I suspect him of being the thief.

adjectiveViewed with suspicion; suspected.

To today’s far right, Israel is a firm ally against Islam, while “cosmopolitans,” many of whom just happen to be Jewish, are suspect.2019 July 24, David Austin Walsh, “Flirting With Fascism”, in Jewish Currents
What appears suspect about the Beeching Report is how quickly it was railroaded through, with the answers manufactured before the questions were asked.2023 March 8, Howard Johnston, “Was Marples the real railway wrecker?”, in RAIL, number 978, page 52

adjectiveViewing with suspicion; suspecting.

Now I’m suspect of other advice that I read in your pages.2004, Will Nickell, letter to the editor of Field & Stream, Volume CIX Number 8 (December 2004–January 2005), page 18

More sentences with suspect

Police are not naming the suspect as he is a minor.From the entry name
The police officer wounded the suspect during the fight that ensued.From the entry wound
There was a tension in the air which made me suspect an approaching storm.From the entry air
He suspected the image was a Web bug used for determining who was visiting the site.From the entry bug
They could only convict him by railroading him on suspect drug-possession charges.From the entry railroad
The Associated Press will not identify the suspect of the crime because he is a juvenile.From the entry identify
The suspect suddenly broke free and grabbed at the policeman's gun.From the entry grab
Bill was eliminated as a suspect when the police interviewed witnesses.From the entry eliminate
A suspect was arrested for the theft of a gold necklace.From the entry theft
The handcuffed suspect gave the officer a desperate butt in the chest.From the entry butt
If you suspect a shop stealer, pay this person a lot of attention.From the entry shop stealer
The violent history of the suspect vindicated the use of force by the police.From the entry vindicate
Many people in Hollywood were blacklisted merely because they were suspected of Communist sympathies.From the entry sympathy
The suspect readily answered all questions the police officers asked him.From the entry readily
I suspect Suzanne and her mysterious friend of being involved in an intrigue.From the entry intrigue
Without any evidence, the police had to let the suspect off the hook.From the entry off the hook
The suspect changed his tune when he learned the police had the evidence.From the entry change one's tune
An anonymous caller tipped off the police that the suspect would be in the area.From the entry tip off
The police chased the suspect for two days before he finally gave them the slip and vanished.From the entry give someone the slip
After the robbery, the police gave chase but didn't catch the suspect.From the entry give chase
The police interrogated the suspect at some length before they let him go.From the entry interrogate
As Jane Doe had an alibi, the police were able to rule her out as a suspect.From the entry rule out
Little did anyone suspect that the military attaché was one of the world's craftiest spies.From the entry attaché
The suspect was given in charge and taken to the police station.From the entry in charge
The suspect doubled back through an alley, but the detective stuck to him like glue.From the entry stick to
The suspect had an ironclad alibi for his whereabouts on the night of the crime.From the entry ironclad
The suspect told all when he saw the surveillance tapes linking him to the crime scene.From the entry tell all
The FBI polygraphed the suspect but learned nothing because they already knew he was lying.From the entry polygraph
The teacher suspected he was on drugs because he was behaving weirdly.From the entry weirdly
We say dolphin intelligence is subhuman; I suspect dolphins say our intelligence is subdolphin.From the entry subhuman
The white-anting of ATSIC has been brought about by the usual suspects.From the entry white-ant
The police rearrested the suspect after finding new evidence linking him to the crime.From the entry rearrest

Meaning of suspect

verb To imagine or suppose (something) to be true, or to exist, without proof.
verb To distrust or have doubts about (something or someone).
verb To believe (someone) to be guilty.

Full definition of suspect

Questions about suspect in a sentence

How do you use suspect in a sentence?: Suspect is used as a verb, noun and adjective. For example: “I suspect him of being the thief.”
What is a short sentence with suspect?: “to suspect the presence of disease”
What does suspect mean?: Suspect means to imagine or suppose (something) to be true, or to exist, without proof.

Adapted from Wiktionary: suspect (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use suspect in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/suspect. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.