supposed

1. 1
   obliged toadjectiveidiomatic

   Expected or obligated to do something, whether by rule, custom, agreement, or plan.

   Like the rules of a board game that tell each player what their turn requires.

   Visitors are supposed to sign in at the front desk before entering.

   The package was supposed to arrive yesterday, yet it still hasn't come.

   UsageUse be supposed to + verb (not incorrect: suppose to): you're supposed to sign in. In the past it often means it did not happen.

   Similarexpected, required, obliged

2. 2
   Saysuh-POHZDUS/səˈpoʊzd/UK/səˈpəʊzd/

   allegedadjective

   Claimed or assumed to exist or to be the case, though without proof or certainty.

   Like a label on a package that you can't trust until you look inside.

   The supposed benefits of the diet were never confirmed by any study.

   He challenged the supposed expert's credentials during the hearing.

   UsageGoes before a noun and shows doubt: a supposed expert may not be one. A rule you are supposed to follow is a different meaning.

   Oppositeactual, real, genuine

   Note

   A word that keeps a claim at arm's length. Placed before a noun, it reports what others believe without endorsing it. David Hume, in The History of England (1759), calls Henry VIII's servant "the supposed author of the violence on the monasteries." The Lancet in 1936 weighs "the supposed dangers" of a procedure. Reputed is its near neighbor.

3. 3
   people sayadjective

   Widely believed or reported to be or do something, usually in the construction supposed to.

   The new bakery on Elm Street is supposed to have the best croissants in town.

   Eating carrots is supposed to improve your eyesight, though the evidence for that is thin.

   UsageOften hints at doubt (it's supposed to be good, but...), and only context separates it from the duty meaning. Keep the d in writing.

   Similarsaid, reputed

   Note

   This is the hearsay reading of supposed to: the speaker passes on a reputation without vouching for it, and often hints at doubt (it's supposed to be good, but...).

4. 4
   thoughtverb

   Simple past and past participle of suppose.

   The detectives supposed the thief had already left town.

   We had always supposed the old house was empty.

   Note

   One regular spelling serves both the simple past (we supposed) and the participle, which builds the perfect (had supposed) and the passive (was supposed). The same form also works as an adjective, as in the "alleged" meaning. Older uses of suppose carry through to this form as well. Something supposed could once mean something put fraudulently in another's place, a use now obsolete. Source

   Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • Supposed could formerly mean fraudulently substituted in another's place; this sense is obsolete. en.wiktionary.org

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