suss

1 of 2

verb

ˈsəs

sussed; sussing; susses

transitive verb

chiefly British : figure out

—usually used with out

chiefly British : to inspect or investigate so as to gain more knowledge

—usually used with out

suss

2 of 2

adjective

less common spelling of sus

slang

: suspicious, suspect

… things became a bit sus when there was a dubious fire on the premises …

Shannen Findlay

Last week, American Airlines took its turn, canceling over 1,600 flights. Weather was dutifully blamed again, along with staffing shortages. But the latter excuse is, as the kids say, pretty sus. Airlines that accepted federal pandemic relief money (and they all did) were barred from laying off workers.

Amy Roberts

I used to think that at-home hair colors and dyes were kind of sus, and that there was absolutely no way you could get salon-level color from a box.

Ama Kwarteng

… she has not questioned how De Bruijn was able to swim that fast, at least not publicly. Others have. "Pretty suss" is the way [Australia's Susie O'Neill] described it …

Jack McCallum

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Towne Properties acquired Regency Place Apartments in Raleigh, North Carolina in 2017 with plans to suss out the market and later develop its own projects in the region.

The Enquirer, 14 Nov. 2022 In fact, Starlink, which is a division of rocketship company SpaceX, is encouraging people to hack its system and suss out its security issues through a bug bounty program.

Alena Botros, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2022 Linton tried to suss out whether another prospective buyer would take a hulking train car off his hands if his permitting and well-digging machinations fell through.

Sofia Jeremias, The Salt Lake Tribune, 25 Oct. 2022 Mayhem, mishaps and wrongful accusations of murder ensue, and soon the odd couple are on the run, trying to suss out the nefarious wrongdoers who have them on their heels.

cleveland, 5 Oct. 2022 As Guevara was getting her blood drawn, the doctor was in the other exam room with Wisar, asking him to lift and rotate his arms to try to suss out the source of his back pain.

Emily Alpert Reyesstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2022 One aspect of that proof that security researchers seemed to suss out: being logged in to a Google account.

Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 28 Sep. 2022 This is frustrating to scientists looking to suss out the nose’s fundamental rules.

Abigail Tucker, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Sep. 2022 The thinking goes that Amazon might be able to suss out your income based on your house size, or your family status based on the presence of toys left on the floor by kids, or your need for furniture based on a lack of obstacles.

Jacob Carpenter, Fortune, 8 Aug. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'suss.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.