suspiciously

adverb

as in incredulously
with distrust eyed me suspiciously when I snapped my book shut and hurriedly stuffed it into my bag

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of suspiciously The objects of female desire—boy bands, teen idols, soap opera characters, suspiciously close hockey players—have always been subject to ridicule. — Janelle Okwodu, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2026 In Yaga, even an explanation of something as dry as how ears work can sound suspiciously like dirty talk. — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 20 Oct. 2026 Yes, the suspiciously delicious chicken shelled out at mall food courts on toothpicks is most likely bourbon chicken. — Jesse Szewczyk, Bon Appetit Magazine, 13 Oct. 2026 Families peered out at us suspiciously from curtainless windows in ramshackle brick dwellings. — Jordan Salama, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 So when La Mer’s newest $450 moisturizer, The Rejuvenating Night Cream—a 2026 Allure Best of Beauty Award winner—landed on my desk, the timing felt almost suspiciously perfect. — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 9 Oct. 2026 Blocks from the main entrance to Southern University A&M, a small crowd hung around a convenience store, but people were unwilling to talk about politics, eyeing strangers suspiciously. — Gary Fields, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026 The suspiciously large price tag suggested Jeff Bezos might have had more on his mind than just a love of nonfiction moviemaking. — Brent Lang, IndieWire, 4 Oct. 2026 Kelce showed a photo of a toilet that looked suspiciously like the one in the music video from Swift. — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for suspiciously
  1. incredulously
  2. sideways
  3. warily
  4. dubiously
  5. doubtfully
  6. skeptically
  7. askance
  8. negatively
Adverb
  • My producer Harriet Taylor and I stood incredulously and watched cargoes of Putin’s gas steam into the Port of Rotterdam.
    — Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Boos rained down from Superdome stands, and Saints coach Kellen Moore gestured incredulously with his arms out to his side and palms up when officials, following a video review, upheld the call of a fumble.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of incredulously
Adverb
  • Leaders who start asking their vendors the governance question now—not after the first agent goes sideways—will set the pace for everyone else.
    — Ryan Austin, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The system lets robots choose suitable movements, such as stepping over objects, ducking under overhead barriers, or turning sideways to pass through narrow gaps.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of sideways
Adverb
  • He's been viewed warily by some Jewish voters, which he's tried to address by apologizing for some past controversial comments.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Ever since the outbreak of war with Iran earlier this year, motorists have been warily eyeing prices at the pump.
    — Kevin Williams, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of warily
Adverb
  • Wolff’s goal was the winner, dubiously allowed as Clint Mathis’ hand clearly helped the ball onto Wolff.
    — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The details of how the Padres finally put to bed an 8-7 victory with Ty France’s tiebreaking home run and three scoreless innings from the bullpen were almost footnotes to the game’s dubiously historic beginning.
    — Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 July 2026
Definition of dubiously
Adverb
  • But in this case, the story is very doubtfully true.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 21 May 2026
Definition of doubtfully
Adverb
  • Treat any such composite skeptically until independent validation catches up.
    — Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2026
  • No one can reliably do that, and any allocator or platform that implies otherwise should be treated skeptically.
    — Steven Brod, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of skeptically
Adverb
  • Candidates and their backers also typically knock on doors to get signatures, but that’s not an option this year as people look askance at strangers on their doorsteps.
    — Patrick Marley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 18 May 2020
  • True, lots of good white progressives look askance at businessmen who amass vast fortunes.
    — John Powers, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2020
Definition of askance
Adverb
  • Disgraced former Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson have, of course, been negatively impacted by their recent scandal.
    — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 24 Oct. 2026
  • In this storybook little village she is ostracized, acknowledged negatively by the town’s men for her fishy smell, insulted regularly when not being totally ignored.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of negatively

Browse Nearby Words

suspicious
suspiciously
suspiciousness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Suspiciously.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/suspiciously. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of grotesque

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All