Meaning & use

suss out

phrase·Everyday

To figure out, investigate, or come to understand something through observation or reasoning.

See it in a sentence

It took her a few minutes to suss out how the new coffee machine worked.

He quickly sussed out that his colleagues were planning a surprise party.

A note on using this word

Suss out is informal British English, less common in American speech, where figure out is the more typical equivalent.

Words with a similar meaning

figure outwork outdiscover

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

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