Library / English Dictionary

ASSUME

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Put clothing on one's body

Example:

He got into his jeans

Synonyms:

assume; don; get into; put on; wear

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

dress; get dressed (put on clothes)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assume"):

hat (put on or wear a hat)

try; try on (put on a garment in order to see whether it fits and looks nice)

scarf (wrap in or adorn with a scarf)

slip on (put on with ease or speed)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 2

Meaning:

Take on a certain form, attribute, or aspect

Example:

The gods assume human or animal form in these fables

Synonyms:

acquire; adopt; assume; take; take on

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

change (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assume"):

re-assume (take on again, as after a time lapse)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Sense 3

Meaning:

Take to be the case or to be true; accept without verification or proof

Example:

I assume his train was late

Synonyms:

assume; presume; take for granted

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

anticipate; expect (regard something as probable or likely)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assume"):

presuppose; suppose (take for granted or as a given; suppose beforehand)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Derivation:

assumption (the act of assuming or taking for granted)

assumption (a hypothesis that is taken for granted)

assumption (a statement that is assumed to be true and from which a conclusion can be drawn)

assumptive (accepted as real or true without proof)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Take up someone's soul into heaven

Example:

This is the day when Mary was assumed into heaven

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

invite; receive; take in (express willingness to have in one's home or environs)

Domain category:

Christian religion; Christianity (a monotheistic system of beliefs and practices based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus as embodied in the New Testament and emphasizing the role of Jesus as savior)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

Assumption ((Christianity) the taking up of the body and soul of the Virgin Mary when her earthly life had ended)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Make a pretence of

Example:

he feigned sleep

Synonyms:

assume; feign; sham; simulate

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

act; dissemble; pretend (behave unnaturally or affectedly)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assume"):

play (pretend to be somebody in the framework of a game or playful activity)

feint (deceive by a mock action)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 6

Meaning:

Occupy or take on

Example:

strike a pose

Synonyms:

assume; strike; take; take up

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Verb group:

fill; occupy; take (assume, as of positions or roles)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 7

Meaning:

Seize and take control without authority and possibly with force; take as one's right or possession

Example:

She seized control of the throne after her husband died

Synonyms:

arrogate; assume; seize; take over; usurp

Classified under:

Verbs of buying, selling, owning

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

take (take by force)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assume"):

annex (take (territory) as if by conquest)

appropriate; capture; conquer; seize (take possession of by force, as after an invasion)

preoccupy (occupy or take possession of beforehand or before another or appropriate for use in advance)

hijack (seize control of)

raid (take over (a company) by buying a controlling interest of its stock)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

assumption (the act of taking possession of or power over something)

Sense 8

Meaning:

Take on as one's own the expenses or debts of another person

Example:

She agreed to bear the responsibility

Synonyms:

accept; assume; bear; take over

Classified under:

Verbs of buying, selling, owning

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

take (take into one's possession)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assume"):

carry the can; face the music (accept the unpleasant consequences of one's actions)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

assumption (the act of taking possession of or power over something)

Sense 9

Meaning:

Take on titles, offices, duties, responsibilities

Example:

When will the new President assume office?

Synonyms:

adopt; assume; take on; take over

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "assume" is one way to...):

take office (assume an office, duty, or title)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assume"):

resume (assume anew)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

assumption (the act of taking possession of or power over something)

Credits

 Context examples: 

We cannot assume that we get away with it.

(Middle Age Severely Obese People More Likely to Die Early, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

A statistical distribution whose elements may only assume discreet values.

(Discrete Distribution, NCI Thesaurus)

Dexniguldipine showed a binding affinity to the P-glycoprotein and therefore it is to be assumed to block the P-glycoprotein pumping mechanism and to modulate multidrug resistance.

(Dexniguldipine, NCI Thesaurus)

It was not merely that Holmes changed his costume. His expression, his manner, his very soul seemed to vary with every fresh part that he assumed.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

It is assumed that these proteins are related to the function of the target antigen at the cellular level.

(Co-Immunoprecipitation, NCI Thesaurus)

Each ssDNA molecule will assume a secondary structure (conformation) dependent upon its unique sequence.

(Conformation Dependent Mutation Detection, NCI Thesaurus/OSP)

A statistical distribution described by a function whose range may assume any value, typically any value in the set of real numbers.

(Continuous Distribution, NCI Thesaurus)

Our paper rewrites the history of Late Antiquity from an environmental perspective that doesn't assume plague was responsible for changing the world, said Merle Eisenberg, also of the synthesis center.

(Justinianic plague not a landmark pandemic?, National Science Foundation)

These results show that different chemical elements can no longer be assumed to be equally abundant in planetary atmospheres, challenging assumptions in several theoretical models.

(Water common – yet scarce – in exoplanets, University of Cambridge)

The problem is that many experts assumed that early Earth craters have been worn away by wind, storms, and other geologic processes.

(Moon Data Sheds Light on Earth’s Asteroid Impact History, NASA)