suspicious

adjective

sus·​pi·​cious sə-ˈspi-shəs 

1

: tending to arouse suspicion : questionable

suspicious characters

2

: disposed to suspect : distrustful

suspicious of strangers

3

: expressing or indicative of suspicion

a suspicious glance

suspiciously adverb

suspiciousness noun

Synonyms

• debatable
• disputable
• dodgy [chiefly British]
• doubtable
• doubtful
• dubious
• dubitable
• equivocal
• fishy
• problematic
• problematical
• queer
• questionable
• shady
• shaky
• suspect

Examples of suspicious in a Sentence

We were instructed to report any suspicious activity in the neighborhood.

The suspicious vehicle was reported to police.

Suspicious characters were seen hanging around the bank.

He found a suspicious lump on his back and was afraid it might be cancer.

Officials are suspicious about her death.

His manner made me suspicious.

Recent Examples on the Web

These tools continuously improve by learning from vast datasets, identifying synthetic media and flagging suspicious activity patterns. —Dan Yerushalmi, Forbes, 18 Feb. 2025

The officer informs him that his license plate is missing and discovers a suspicious liquid dripping from the trunk. —Samantha Stutsman, People.com, 18 Feb. 2025

Officials said the people inside the home were able to escape thanks to the mom, who heard suspicious noises, before finding the fire and evacuating her family, adding that some family members even had to jump out of second-story windows to escape the flames. —Stepheny Price, Fox News, 18 Feb. 2025

Russia has been accused of engaging in suspicious maneuvers near key undersea communication cables, which are vital to global communication systems. —Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 17 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

suspicious

adjective

sus·​pi·​cious sə-ˈspish-əs 

1

: likely to arouse suspicion : questionable

suspicious behavior

2

: likely to suspect or distrust

suspicious of strangers

3

: showing suspicion

a suspicious glance

suspiciously adverb

suspiciousness noun