Suspect in Different Languages
Discover 'Suspect' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'suspect' carries a significant weight in our vocabulary, often associated with uncertainty, doubt, and intrigue. Its cultural importance is undeniable, as it plays a crucial role in various aspects of society, including criminal investigations, politics, and even everyday conversations. But have you ever wondered how 'suspect' is translated in different languages around the world?
Understanding the translation of 'suspect' in various languages can provide valuable insights into cultural nuances and differences. For instance, in Spanish, 'sospechoso' (m.)/'sospechosa' (f.) not only refers to a person suspected of a crime but also carries a connotation of mistrust. Meanwhile, in German, 'Verdächtiger' can imply a greater level of suspicion compared to its English counterpart. And in Japanese, 'gan suspect' (疑う人) highlights the act of suspecting someone, rather than the person being suspected.
So, whether you're a language enthusiast, a world traveler, or simply curious about cultural differences, exploring the translations of 'suspect' can be a fascinating journey. Here are some translations to get you started:
Suspect
Suspect in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | verdagte | ||
| The word 'verdagte' comes from Dutch and can also mean 'the accused'. | |||
| Amharic | ተጠርጣሪ | ||
| The word ተጠርጣሪ (tä-t’ər-tar-i) can also mean 'suspicious' or 'problematic'. | |||
| Hausa | wanda ake zargi | ||
| "Wanda ake zargi" literally means "the one who is accused of something" in Hausa. | |||
| Igbo | onye a na-enyo enyo | ||
| "Onye a na enyo enyo" derives from the verb "enyo" which also means "hunt" or "pursue." | |||
| Malagasy | ahiahiana | ||
| The Malagasy word "ahiahiana" is thought to have originated from the verb "miahiahy," meaning "to be suspicious," and is related to the word "ahiahy," meaning "suspicion." | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | wokayikira | ||
| The word "wokayikira" in Nyanja (Chichewa) also means "to be cautious" or "to be wary of something or someone." | |||
| Shona | fungira | ||
| The word "fungira" in Shona derives from the Proto-Bantu root "*buna", meaning to suspect, and is cognate with other Bantu languages such as Bemba, Swahili, and Zulu. | |||
| Somali | tuhunsan yahay | ||
| The term 'tuhunsan yahay' in Somali can also refer to someone who is under investigation or has been accused of a crime. | |||
| Sesotho | belaela | ||
| The word 'belaela' is thought to be derived from the word 'belega', meaning 'to suspect'. | |||
| Swahili | mtuhumiwa | ||
| The Swahili word "mtuhumiwa" also means "guest" or "stranger". | |||
| Xhosa | umrhanelwa | ||
| The word 'umrhanelwa' can alternatively refer to a person who has been accused of a crime. | |||
| Yoruba | fura | ||
| The word 'fura' also means 'to investigate' and 'to suspect', and it is related to the verb 'fura', which means 'to smell'. | |||
| Zulu | umsolwa | ||
| In Zulu, the word "umsolwa" can refer to both a suspect in a crime as well as a person of ill repute or questionable character. | |||
| Bambara | siganamɔgɔ | ||
| Ewe | bu nazã | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ukekwaho icyaha | ||
| Lingala | moto bazokanisa | ||
| Luganda | okwekengera | ||
| Sepedi | mogononelwa | ||
| Twi (Akan) | susu sɛ | ||
Suspect in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | مشتبه فيه | ||
| The Arabic word "مشتبه فيه" can also mean "doubtful" or "ambiguous." | |||
| Hebrew | חָשׁוּד | ||
| The word "חָשׁוּד" (chasud) in Hebrew also means "sick" or "suffering", which reflects the traditional belief that illness is a sign of divine punishment for sin. | |||
| Pashto | شکمن | ||
| The Pashto word "شکمن" (pronounced shukman) carries the dual meaning of both "suspect" and "doubtful or questionable," originating from the verb "شك" (pronounced shak), which translates to "to doubt" or "to be hesitant." | |||
| Arabic | مشتبه فيه | ||
| The Arabic word "مشتبه فيه" can also mean "doubtful" or "ambiguous." | |||
Suspect in Western European Languages
| Albanian | i dyshuar | ||
| The Albanian word "i dyshuar" means "suspect" and also "doubtful, uncertain, unreliable, dubious." | |||
| Basque | susmagarria | ||
| The word "susmagarria" also means "unlucky" or "unfortunate" in Basque. | |||
| Catalan | sospitós | ||
| The word "sospitós" in Catalan comes from the Latin word "suspiciosus", meaning "suspicious" or "full of suspicion". | |||
| Croatian | osumnjičeni | ||
| "Osumnjičeni" is a Croatian word that comes from the verb "sumnjiti" which means "to suspect" or "to doubt". | |||
| Danish | formode | ||
| In Danish, "formode" is a false friend, meaning "suspect" instead of its etymological root "assume" or "suppose". | |||
| Dutch | verdachte | ||
| The Dutch word "verdachte" derives from the Middle Dutch "verdaget". It can also refer to a person who has been accused of a crime and is under investigation, or to something suspect or suspicious. | |||
| English | suspect | ||
| In etymology, 'suspect' derives from the Latin 'suspicere', meaning 'to look up to', hence 'to mistrust'. | |||
| French | suspect | ||
| In French, « suspect » means « suspect » but also « suspect ». | |||
| Frisian | fertochte | ||
| Frisian 'fertochte' likely originates from the Middle Dutch 'vertoghen' ('to accuse') via 'vertuchten' ('to suspect'), 'fertucht' ('suspicion'). | |||
| Galician | sospeitoso | ||
| Galician "sospeitoso" derives from Latin "suspiciosus" and shares some meanings with "suspicious" in English. | |||
| German | vermuten | ||
| The word "vermuten" is derived from the Middle High German word "vermüeten," which in turn comes from the Old High German word "vermuoten," meaning "to guess". Hence, it shares a common root with the English word "moot," which also means "to guess" or "to suggest." | |||
| Icelandic | grunar | ||
| Grunar means "to growl" as well as "suspect" in Icelandic. | |||
| Irish | amhras | ||
| The term "amhras" derives from the Proto-Celtic "*am-ro-ti-s," meaning "doubtful," and it is cognate with the Welsh word "amheus," which means "doubtful, uncertain." | |||
| Italian | sospettare | ||
| "Sospettare" derives from the Latin word "suspicari", which means "to have a suspicion" or "to guess", and is related to the word "specere", which means "to look at" or "to observe". | |||
| Luxembourgish | verdächtegt | ||
| The word "verdächtegt" in Luxembourgish originally meant "suspicious" or "dubious", but it has also come to mean "suspect" in the sense of being a person who is believed to have committed a crime. | |||
| Maltese | suspettat | ||
| Maltese "suspettat" may come from the Italian "sospettato" or Spanish "sospechado" or is related to the noun "suspett" (suspicion). | |||
| Norwegian | mistenkt | ||
| The Norwegian word «mistenkt» means «suspect» and stems from the verb «å miste» which means «to lose» or «to miss». | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | suspeito | ||
| In Portuguese, "suspeito" can also mean "uncertain" or "doubtful", and comes from the Latin "suspectus", meaning "looked at from below". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | amharas | ||
| The Gaelic word 'amharas' also means 'darkness', 'shadow', 'concealedness', and 'mystery'. | |||
| Spanish | sospechar | ||
| The Spanish word "sospechar" ("suspect") derives from Latin "suspicari" ("to suspect"), originally meaning "to look under" or "to examine carefully." | |||
| Swedish | misstänka | ||
| The Swedish word "misstänka" is related to the German "missdenken", which means "misunderstand" and the English word "mistrust". | |||
| Welsh | amau | ||
| The Welsh word "amau" can also mean "to hesitate" or "to doubt". | |||
Suspect in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | падазраваны | ||
| The Belarusian word "падазраваны" can also mean "suspicious" or "doubtful". | |||
| Bosnian | osumnjičeni | ||
| The word 'osumnjičeni' in Bosnian is derived from 'osumnja', suspicion. | |||
| Bulgarian | заподозрян | ||
| The Bulgarian word "заподозрян" ultimately derives from the Proto-Slavic root *podъzьrěti, meaning "to suspect" or "to distrust". | |||
| Czech | tušit | ||
| This Czech word can also be used to describe someone as “unattractive”. | |||
| Estonian | kahtlustatav | ||
| The word "kahtlustatav" originally meant "accused" and still retains that meaning in legal contexts. | |||
| Finnish | epäilty | ||
| "Epäilty" also means "doubted" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | gyanúsított | ||
| The word "gyanúsított" in Hungarian is derived from the verb "gyanúsítani" ("to suspect"), which in turn comes from the Turkish word "günah" ("sin"). | |||
| Latvian | aizdomās turamais | ||
| The word aizdomās turamais means someone who is suspected of something, but it also has a more archaic meaning, which is simply 'suspicion'. | |||
| Lithuanian | įtariamasis | ||
| "Įtariamasis" derives from the verb "įtarti" (to suspect) and the suffix "-asis," indicating a person who is the subject of the action. | |||
| Macedonian | осомничен | ||
| The word is derived from the verb "сомамни" (somnam), meaning "to suspect". | |||
| Polish | posądzać | ||
| "Posądzać" comes from the Proto-Slavic *sǫditi, which also means "to judge". | |||
| Romanian | suspect | ||
| In Romanian, "suspect" can also mean "suspicion" or "suspicious". | |||
| Russian | подозреваемый | ||
| In Russian, the word "подозреваемый" has the literal meaning of "suspected" and is formed from the verb "подозревать" (to suspect), which in turn originates from the Old Slavic root "зър" (zor) meaning "to see". | |||
| Serbian | осумњичени | ||
| "Осумњичен" originates from the Proto-Slavic form ✄sumьniti se, while "сумњаša" ("doubt") in contemporary Serbian has retained an older meaning of "fear," "precaution." | |||
| Slovak | podozrivý | ||
| The Slovak word "podozrivý" originates from the Old Slavic root "podzorъ", meaning "to look at" or "to gaze upon". | |||
| Slovenian | osumljenec | ||
| The word "osumljenec" derives from the verb "osumljiviti", meaning "to suspect" or "to doubt". | |||
| Ukrainian | підозрюваний | ||
| Підозрюваний is derived from the Ukrainian verb підозрювати (suspect) and can also mean "suspicious" or "suspected". | |||
Suspect in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | সন্দেহ | ||
| সন্দেহ (pronounced /ʃɔnd̪eɦ/) comes from the Sanskrit word संदेह (saṃdeha) meaning 'doubt', 'uncertainty', or 'misgiving'. | |||
| Gujarati | શંકા | ||
| The Gujarati word "shaanka" can also mean "suspicion" or "doubt" in the English language. | |||
| Hindi | संदिग्ध | ||
| The Hindi word "संदिग्ध" can also mean "doubtful" or "uncertain". | |||
| Kannada | ಶಂಕಿತ | ||
| ಶಂಕಿತ originates from the verb 'ಶಂಕಿಸು' (to doubt or suspect), which ultimately comes from the Sanskrit word 'शङ्का' (doubt). | |||
| Malayalam | സംശയിക്കുന്നു | ||
| "Samshayikkunnu" in Malayalam can also mean "hesitate" or "doubt", reflecting the uncertainty associated with suspicion. | |||
| Marathi | संशयित | ||
| The word "संशयित" in Marathi can also mean uncertain, doubtful, or questionable. | |||
| Nepali | संदिग्ध | ||
| The Nepali word संदिग्ध can also mean 'ambiguous', 'uncertain' or 'doubtful'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਸ਼ੱਕੀ | ||
| The word "ਸ਼ੱਕੀ" (suspect) in Punjabi can also mean "doubtful" or "uncertain". | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | සැකකරු | ||
| In Sinhala, the word "සැකකරු" can also refer to someone who is dubious or doubtful, or to a person who has been accused of a crime. | |||
| Tamil | சந்தேக நபர் | ||
| The word "சந்தேக நபர்" can also refer to a "convicted person awaiting execution" in Tamil. | |||
| Telugu | అనుమానితుడు | ||
| Urdu | مشتبہ | ||
Suspect in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 疑似 | ||
| 疑似 (yísì) also means "pseudo", "quasi", or "imitation". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 疑似 | ||
| 疑似, 疑有其事。《左傳·襄公三十一年》: "若疑似, 勿疑, 勿似, 勿疑似。" 後泛指類似, 可能是。 | |||
| Japanese | 容疑者 | ||
| The word "容疑者" (pronounced "yougisha") is also used in Japanese to refer to someone who has been arrested but not yet charged with a crime. | |||
| Korean | 용의자 | ||
| The word '용의자' (suspect) in Korean literally translates to 'dragon' (용) and 'doubt' (의), as if the person is shrouded in mystery like a dragon | |||
| Mongolian | сэжигтэн | ||
| The word "сэжигтэн" is of Mongolian origin, meaning "one who is suspected", and is used to describe a person who is suspected of a crime. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | သံသယရှိသူ | ||
Suspect in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | tersangka | ||
| "Tersangka" derives from "sangka", meaning "suspicion" or "opinion" | |||
| Javanese | tersangka | ||
| The word "tersangka" in Javanese also means "suspect" in Indonesian, and is derived from the Sanskrit word "sangka" meaning "thought".} | |||
| Khmer | សង្ស័យ | ||
| The word "សង្ស័យ" can also mean "doubt" or "uncertainty" in Khmer. | |||
| Lao | ສົງໃສ | ||
| In Lao, "ສົງໃສ" can also mean "doubt" or "question something's truthfulness". | |||
| Malay | suspek | ||
| In Malay, "suspek" is often used to describe a person who is suspected of doing something suspicious, but it can also refer to someone who has caused damage or trouble. | |||
| Thai | สงสัย | ||
| The Thai word "สงสัย" comes from Sanskrit "saṃsaya", but can also express uncertainty or curiosity. | |||
| Vietnamese | nghi ngờ | ||
| Nghi ngờ (suspect) trong tiếng Việt bắt nguồn từ nghi hoặc và ngờ vực, ám chỉ sự không tin tưởng hoặc nghi vấn về một người hoặc điều gì đó. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pinaghihinalaan | ||
Suspect in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | şübhəli | ||
| The word "şübhəli" comes from the Arabic word "şübhe", which means "doubt" or "suspicion". | |||
| Kazakh | күдікті | ||
| The word "күдікті" in Kazakh also means "suspicious" or "doubtful". | |||
| Kyrgyz | шектүү | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "шектүү" can also mean "doubtful" or "not sure". | |||
| Tajik | гумонбар | ||
| The word «гумонбар» in Tajik also means "a person who is under suspicion or who aroused suspicion or doubt," "a suspicious person," and "a person with suspicious behavior." | |||
| Turkmen | şübheli | ||
| Uzbek | shubhali | ||
| The Uzbek word "shubhali" can also refer to a person who is suspicious, untrustworthy, or doubtful. | |||
| Uyghur | گۇماندار | ||
Suspect in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hoʻohuoi | ||
| The Hawaiian word "hoʻohuoi" also means to be suspicious of or to accuse. | |||
| Maori | whakapae | ||
| The word 'whakapae' also means 'to accuse' or 'to blame' in Maori. | |||
| Samoan | masalosalo | ||
| The word "masalosalo" can also mean "to question or interrogate" in Samoan. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | hinala | ||
| "Hinala" is related to "hala" and "hiling" (suspicion, guess), and refers to a vague or unfounded doubt about something or someone. | |||
Suspect in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | amuyaña | ||
| Guarani | ñemo'ã | ||
Suspect in International Languages
| Esperanto | suspektinda | ||
| The Esperanto word "suspektinda" is derived from the Latin word "suspicio", meaning "mistrust" or "suspicion". | |||
| Latin | suspicio | ||
| The word "suspicio" in Latin also means "distrust" or "mistrust". | |||
Suspect in Others Languages
| Greek | ύποπτος | ||
| The word 'ύποπτος' has roots in 'υπό' and 'οπάω,' meaning something seen out of the corner of the eye, making it uncertain and suspect. | |||
| Hmong | neeg phem neeg liam | ||
| The Hmong word "neeg phem neeg liam" derives from the phrase "to suspect a bad person," which refers to someone suspected of committing a crime. | |||
| Kurdish | bişik | ||
| The word "bişik" in Kurdish can also mean "to sway" or "to cradle". | |||
| Turkish | şüpheli | ||
| "Şüpheli" kelimesi Arapça "şübhe" kelimesinden türemiştir ve "tereddüt, emin olmama" anlamlarına da gelir. | |||
| Xhosa | umrhanelwa | ||
| The word 'umrhanelwa' can alternatively refer to a person who has been accused of a crime. | |||
| Yiddish | כאָשעד | ||
| The Yiddish word "כאָשעד" derives from the Hebrew "כשר" meaning "kosher" and took on the meaning "suspicious" possibly through its association with "treif," the opposite of kosher. | |||
| Zulu | umsolwa | ||
| In Zulu, the word "umsolwa" can refer to both a suspect in a crime as well as a person of ill repute or questionable character. | |||
| Assamese | সন্দেহ | ||
| Aymara | amuyaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | संदैहास्पद | ||
| Dhivehi | ޝައްކުކުރެވޭ | ||
| Dogri | मशकूक माहनू | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pinaghihinalaan | ||
| Guarani | ñemo'ã | ||
| Ilocano | maipagarup | ||
| Krio | tink se | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | گومانلێکراو | ||
| Maithili | संदेहास्पद | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯆꯤꯡꯅꯕ | ||
| Mizo | ringhlel | ||
| Oromo | shakkamaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ସନ୍ଦିଗ୍ଧ | ||
| Quechua | riqsichikuq | ||
| Sanskrit | संदिग्ध | ||
| Tatar | шикләнүче | ||
| Tigrinya | ጥርጣረ | ||
| Tsonga | ehleketela | ||