putative
Commonly believed true
Putative means supposed or commonly accepted as such, though not necessarily proven: the putative father of the child, the putative leader of the organization.
The word carries a note of uncertainty—something is called putative when its status rests on assumption or reputation rather than established fact.
It appears most often in legal and academic contexts.
Believed without certainty
- supposedAssumed to be true
- inferredConcluded from indirect evidence
- surmisedConcluded without proof
- deducedReached by reasoning
implied · taken-for-granted · accepted · implicit · unquestioned · posited · granted · given
Believed but not verified
- claimedStated as fact
- reportedCommunicated formally
- purportedClaimed without proof
- supposedAssumed to be true
so-called · ostensible · professed · rumored · asserted · declared · stated · said
Based on incomplete evidence
- speculativeBased on conjecture
- theoreticalBased on hypothesis, untested
- postulatedAssumed for argument's sake
- notionalConceptual, not concrete
suppositional · propositional · provisional · tentative · unproven · untested · proposed · suggested
Of uncertain validity
- uncertainNot firmly known
- unconfirmedNot officially validated
- unverifiedNot yet proven true
- disputableAble to be challenged
debatable · contestable · dubious · suspect · challenged · unsettled · undetermined · unestablished
presumed
Believed without certainty
deduced · implied · taken-for-granted · accepted · implicit · unquestioned · posited · granted · given · presupposed
reputed
Believed but not verified
supposed · so-called · ostensible · professed · rumored · asserted · declared · stated · said · believed
conjectural
Based on incomplete evidence
- speculativeBased on conjecture
- theoreticalBased on hypothesis, untested
- postulatedAssumed for argument's sake
notional · suppositional · propositional · provisional · tentative · unproven · untested · proposed · suggested · posited
questionable
Of uncertain validity
- uncertainNot firmly known
- unconfirmedNot officially validated
- unverifiedNot yet proven true
disputable · debatable · contestable · dubious · suspect · challenged · unsettled · undetermined · unestablished · unsubstantiated
putativeproven
Established as fact
confirmed · verified · established · validated · substantiated
putativeacknowledged
Accepted as true
recognized · confirmed · declared · avowed · admitted