noun · neutral
suspect
UK/ˈsʌspekt/US/ˈsʌspɛkt/SUS·pect
Band 5-6speakingtask2
a person thought likely to have committed a crime
Examples
“The police arrested the prime suspect late last night.”
“Several suspects were released after questioning.”
“She became a suspect because her fingerprints were on the door handle.”
Band 8 sentence
“Although he remains the prime suspect, there is still insufficient evidence to charge him formally.”
Collocations
- prime suspect
- suspected of
- to suspect someone
Word family
suspect verbsuspect nounsuspicious adjectivesuspicion noun
Common mistakes
I suspicious him for stealing.→I suspect him of stealing.
He is a suspected.→He is a suspect.
Say it for a higher band
5think→6believe→7+suspect
Synonyms
accused
perpetrator
Easily confused
suspicious
“He looked suspicious standing outside the shop.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Crime & Law
Learn it with its set