What does "deem" mean?
An opinion, a judgment, a surmise.
Deem
/diːm/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An opinion, a judgment, a surmise.
- Grammar: deem is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: consider, hold, judge, view as.
- Useful contrasts: disallow, disregard, ignore.
- Usage evidence: That person asked me who I was, but I did not deem it necessary to answer him.
How to use "deem"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "deem" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "deem" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "deem" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "deem" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "deem" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "consider" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "deem", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An opinion, a judgment, a surmise. obsolete
Verb
- 1 To hold in belief or estimation; to adjudge as a conclusion; to regard as being; to evaluate according to one's beliefs; to account. ditransitive
"She deemed his efforts insufficient."
- 2 keep in mind or convey as a conviction or view wordnet
- 3 To think, judge, or have or hold as an opinion; to decide or believe on consideration; to suppose. ambitransitive
"It may ſeeme a rude diſpoſition that ſorteth not with the quality of the age; and pollicy deemeth that vertue a vice, that modeſty, ſimplicity, that reſolotenes, diſſolutenes, that conformeth not it ſelfe with a ſupple and deft correſpondence to the preſent time."
- 4 To judge, to pass judgment on; to doom, to sentence. obsolete, transitive
"[Section] 39. Being found by a constable on a highway, street, or public place, suspected of coming from land where he has been unlawfully in search or pursuit of game, and game or nets, &c. being found in his possession or in a cart, &c.,—the justices deeming the game unlawfully obtained from some land."
- 5 To adjudge, to decree. obsolete, transitive
"And it is hereby enacted, that in any zillah, in which the Governor in Council of Fort St. George deems it expedient to establish the zillah court, and the court or courts under subordinate judges or principal sudder ameens, at separate stations, it shall be competent to the said Governor in Council, by an Order in Council, to authorize the session judge to take cognizance of all criminal cases subject ordinarily to the jurisdiction of the subordinate courts, […]"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To dispense (justice); to administer (law). obsolete, transitive
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Antonyms
Example
"That person asked me who I was, but I did not deem it necessary to answer him."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "deem"?
Common synonyms include: consider, hold, judge, view as, account, account.
How do you use "deem" in a sentence?
That person asked me who I was, but I did not deem it necessary to answer him.
How do you pronounce "deem"?
Pronounced /diːm/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English dēmen (“to judge; to criticize, condemn; to impose a penalty on, sentence; to direct, order; to believe, think, deem”), from Old English dēman (“to decide, decree, deem”), from Proto-West Germanic *dōmijan, from Proto-Germanic *dōmijaną (“to judge, think”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to set, put”). The word is cognate with Danish and Norwegian Bokmål dømme (“to judge”), Dutch doemen (“to condemn, foredoom”), North Frisian dema (“to judge, recognise”), Norwegian Nynorsk døma (“to judge”), Swedish döma (“to judge, sentence, condemn”), Finnish tuomita (“to judge”). It is also related to doom.
Etymology 2
From Middle English deme, from the verb (see above).