se douter
suspect
Penser qu’une chose est vraie ou va arriver, sans en être sûr.
Definition & meaning
Se douter is a pronominal French verb meaning to suspect, to have an inkling, to guess, or to realize something intuitively.
It is commonly used in two patterns:
- se douter de quelque chose — to suspect or have an idea about something
- Je me doute de la vérité. — “I suspect the truth.”
- se douter que + clause — to suspect or realize that something is the case
- Elle se doute qu’il ment. — “She suspects that he is lying.”
In the negative, ne pas se douter de quelque chose often means not to realize, not to suspect, or to be unaware of something:
- Il ne se doutait pas du danger. — “He was unaware of the danger.”
- Ils ne se doutaient pas que nous étions déjà partis. — “They did not realize that we had already left.”
The related verb douter means “to doubt,” whereas se douter generally means “to suspect” or “to figure out.”
Grammar & Word origin
Se douter is a pronominal verb. Its pronoun changes according to the subject:
- je me doute — I suspect / I realize
- tu te doutes — you suspect
- il/elle se doute — he/she suspects
- nous nous doutons — we suspect
- vous vous doutez — you suspect
- ils/elles se doutent — they suspect
It is usually followed by de before a noun or infinitive:
It can also be followed by que and a subordinate clause:
The verb comes from douter , ultimately derived from Latin dubitare, “to doubt.” The reflexive form developed the meaning of forming an assumption or having an intuition about something.
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonyms
- soupçonner — to suspect; usually suggests a specific suspicion, sometimes involving wrongdoing.
- pressentir — to have a premonition or intuitive feeling, often about something that may happen.
- deviner — to guess or figure out, often by interpreting clues.
- comprendre — to understand; broader and less focused on intuition or suspicion.
- avoir l’intuition de — to have an intuition about something; more explicitly intuitive and slightly more formal.
Antonyms
- ignorer — to be unaware of or not know something.
- ne pas soupçonner — not to suspect something; a direct opposite in many contexts.
- ne pas savoir — not to know; more general than se douter.
- être certain de — to be certain of; expresses certainty rather than an uncertain suspicion.
Common phrases & collocations
- se douter de quelque chose — to suspect something
- se douter que — to suspect or realize that
- ne pas se douter de quelque chose — not to realize or suspect something
- sans se douter de rien — without suspecting anything
- se douter de la vérité — to suspect the truth
- Je m’en doutais ! — “I suspected as much!” or “I knew it!”
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Examples
Il s'en doutait depuis longtemps déjà.other
He had suspected it for a long time already.
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