as in apparent
appearing to be true on the basis of evidence that may or may not be confirmed
the putative reason for her dismissal was poor job performance
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Recent Examples of putative
In the putative May 17, 2024 message, Lively, 38 — who starred in and served as a producer on the Colleen Hoover adaptation — began by thanking Matt for considering watching the film and warning him about its subject matter.
—
Elizabeth Rosner, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026
His putative nomination caps months of two-pronged campaigning to viewers outside and inside the entertainment-tastemaker sphere.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 21 Jan. 2026
String theory is a putative solution to the problem, replacing particles with minuscule lengths of vibrating string to smooth over snags that doom other candidate theories.
—Matt Von Hippel, Quanta Magazine, 19 Nov. 2025
Each photographic plate took a 50-minute exposure of the sky, leading Villarroel to suggest that these putative objects were stationary in space, possibly in geostationary orbit some 22,000 miles (35,000 kilometers) above Earth.
—Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for putative
Elizabeth Rosner, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026
His putative nomination caps months of two-pronged campaigning to viewers outside and inside the entertainment-tastemaker sphere.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 21 Jan. 2026
String theory is a putative solution to the problem, replacing particles with minuscule lengths of vibrating string to smooth over snags that doom other candidate theories.
—Matt Von Hippel, Quanta Magazine, 19 Nov. 2025
Each photographic plate took a 50-minute exposure of the sky, leading Villarroel to suggest that these putative objects were stationary in space, possibly in geostationary orbit some 22,000 miles (35,000 kilometers) above Earth.
—Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for putative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for putative
Adjective
-
Police vans behind a temporary metal fence secured the road to the athletes’ village, but the protesters veered away, continuing their apparent route toward the Santagiulia venue.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
8 Feb. 2026
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Guthrie siblings post back-to-back videos addressed to captors The urgency to find Guthrie was apparent in an emotional plea posted in two videos released one day apart.—
Sarah Lapidus,
AZCentral.com,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The presumed reasoning behind why the film was ignored is multilayered.—
Marcus Jones,
IndieWire,
8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
As major league owners meet this week to plot strategy, the powers that be will consider the probable push for a salary cap.—
Assistant Sports Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
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However, the evidence points to the latter as being the probable origin.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The Tuesday night development in the case comes hours after the release of doorbell camera footage of a possible suspect in the disappearance.—
Molly Parks,
The Washington Examiner,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Be sure to cover your head and neck with your arms, and crawl under a sturdy table if possible.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The feds’ ostensible reason for the invasion makes no sense.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Feb. 2026
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The moment on Tuesday became fodder for Ted Cruz to go after Ted Sarandos at an ostensible Netflix-WB antitrust hearing.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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And Lincoln’s seeming role as a symphonic football is nothing new, either.—
Classical Music Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Feb. 2026
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Giving things a second life—or a third—is a gift of the young architect, who over her decade-long career, has turned tree trunks into tables and tables into storage trunks, never pausing to question an object’s value—or any seeming lack thereof.—
Vaishnavi Nayel Talawadekar,
Architectural Digest,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
After Son left in the summer to join MLS side Los Angeles FC, there was no obvious alternative apart from Guglielmo Vicario.—
Jay Harris,
New York Times,
8 Feb. 2026
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If the main subject isn’t obvious across most frames, the video often won’t show up in search.—
Ken Colburn,
AZCentral.com,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Putative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/putative. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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