SUPPOSITION


Meaning of SUPPOSITION in English

ˌsəpəˈzishən noun

( -s )

Etymology: Middle English, from Late Latin supposition-, suppositio hypothesis, conjecture (influenced in meaning by Greek hypothesis, literally, act of placing under), from Latin, act of placing under, from suppositus (past participle of supponere to place under) + -ion-, -io -ion — more at hypothesis , suppose

1.

a. : something (as a hypothesis, conjecture, theory, or surmise) that is supposed

on the supposition that … language so largely contributes to making us men — A.A.Hill

an entirely gratuitous supposition on my part — W.F.De Morgan

b. : the act or process of supposing and especially of assuming something tentatively, hypothetically, or for the sake of argument

not the old psychology of supposition , but the new psychology of practical investigation — George Sampson

c. obsolete : the state of being uncertain and subject to surmise

he is sufficient, yet his means are in supposition — Shakespeare

2. : fraudulent substitution or alteration ; specifically : forgery

3. : one of the various connotations that a term may have in different passages

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.