What does "suspend" mean?
To halt something temporarily.
Suspend
/səsˈpɛnd/ verb
verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: To halt something temporarily.
- Grammar: suspend is listed as verb.
- Nearest alternatives: abandoning, abolish, aborted, aborting.
- Useful contrasts: actual conditions, civil progress plan, actioning.
- Usage evidence: Philosophy teaches us to feel uncertain about the things that seem to us self-evident. Propaganda, on the other hand, teaches us to accept as self-evident matters about which it would be reasonable to suspend our judgment or to feel doubt.
How to use "suspend"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "suspend" 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 "suspend" 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 "suspend" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "suspend" 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 "suspend" is acting as 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 "abandoning" 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 "suspend", 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
Verb
- 1 To halt something temporarily.
"The meeting was suspended for lunch."
- 2 cause to be held in suspension in a fluid wordnet
- 3 To hold in an undetermined or undecided state.
"suspending out judgement"
- 4 stop a process or a habit by imposing a freeze on it wordnet
- 5 To discontinue or interrupt a function, task, position, or event.
"to suspend a thread of execution in a computer program"
Show 10 more definitions
- 6 make inoperative or stop wordnet
- 7 To hang freely; underhang.
"to suspend a ball by a thread"
- 8 hang freely wordnet
- 9 To bring a solid substance, usually in powder form, into suspension in a liquid.
- 10 bar temporarily; from school, office, etc. wordnet
- 11 To make to depend. obsolete
"God hath all along in the Scripture suspended the promise of eternal life on the condition of obedience and holiness of life."
- 12 render temporarily ineffective wordnet
- 13 To debar, or cause to withdraw temporarily, from any privilege, from the execution of an office, from the enjoyment of income, etc.
"to suspend a student from college; to suspend a member of a club"
- 14 To support in a liquid, as an insoluble powder, by stirring, to facilitate chemical action.
- 15 To remove the value of an unused coupon from an air ticket, typically so as to allow continuation of the next sectors' travel.
Example
"Philosophy teaches us to feel uncertain about the things that seem to us self-evident. Propaganda, on the other hand, teaches us to accept as self-evident matters about which it would be reasonable to suspend our judgment or to feel doubt."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "suspend"?
Common synonyms include: abandoning, abolish, aborted, aborting, abrogate, adjourn.
How do you use "suspend" in a sentence?
Philosophy teaches us to feel uncertain about the things that seem to us self-evident. Propaganda, on the other hand, teaches us to accept as self-evident matters about which it would be reasonable to suspend our judgment or to feel doubt.
How do you pronounce "suspend"?
Pronounced /səsˈpɛnd/.
Etymology
From Old French sospendre, from Latin suspendere.