Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Having or showing excessive and arrogant self-confidence; presumptuous.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Acting presumptuously; hence, overbold; forward; presumptuous.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb Present participle of presume.

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Your letter was, if possible, received with more than usual warmth for I was not a little anxious to hear from you notwithstanding I of course knew the cause of your delay -- And you were right in presuming I would pardon you, for how could I ever do otherwise when you always have a very good excuse and are ever generous to pardon me.

    Letter from Mary Houston to Young John Allen,October 23, 1856 2008

  • I give little credence in presuming the human practice of organizing thought processes as providing insight into the ultimate reality (Who knows the Truth?).

    Blurring the Line 2007

  • Perhaps in presuming to take some laws more seriously than others I am on a slippery slope. alex.

    mordida 2007

  • Then quoth he to the wolf, Verily, the Lord pardoneth his erring servant and relenteth towards him, if he confess his offences; and I am a weak slave and have offended in presuming to counsel thee.

    The Book of The Thousand Nights And A Night 2006

  • I am afraid I was hasty in presuming I could help you to find your object.

    The Hills of the Shatemuc 1856

  • YAFLA?), and of course the possibilities are rich, again presuming that you're willing to accept an arbitrary sequence of letters and/or digits, creating a backronym to match.

    Archive 2006-04-01 Ben Barren 2006

  • YAFLA?), and of course the possibilities are rich, again presuming that you're willing to accept an arbitrary sequence of letters and/or digits, creating a backronym to match.

    3 to 5 Letter URLs for Your.com + .au Ben Barren 2006

  • Don’t you think you’re going a bit far in presuming this is a hoax?

    FBI Investigating Possible UVa Hate Crime at cvillenews.com 2003

  • Whoever wins – former mayor Ken Livingstone or former MP Oona King – will have a 20-month warm-up period before taking on Johnson (presuming, that is, Boris's ambition to replace David Cameron doesn't prompt him to quit City Hall and scurry back to the Commons).

    To beat Boris in London, Labour must bide its time 2010

  • The current money is on Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, who had the acceptable aristocratic and educational pedigree for the job -- presuming, that is, that you must practice falconry in order to write about it.

    Who wrote Shakespeare? Author James Shapiro offers an answer. Lloyd Rose 2010

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