The Usual Suspect

Although the Fifth Amendment might protect a person from incriminating himself, it does not, unfortunately, protect anyone from suspecting himself. Ms. Picky is alluding to those people who misuse the adjective suspect. The type of unfortunate usage that has become increasingly frequent is “I am very suspect of that situation.” Whatever could the speaker be intending to say? Probably nothing even close to what he actually is saying! Let's see why.

The Noun Suspect

The noun suspect means someone who is suspected, usually of doing something illegal or malevolent.

Example:

The witness identified the suspect from a lineup.

The Adjective Suspect

The adjective suspect describes something or someone that is under suspicion, usually of doing something illegal or malevolent or of being malevolent. (On that basis, you can see that if you say “I am suspect,” you are saying that you yourself are under suspicion. Most likely, that is not what you mean.)

Examples:

The meat, having been left unrefrigerated all day, was highly suspect.  (We suspected that the meat was spoiled.)

At the security check-in, backpacks are sometimes suspect. (Backpacks are sometimes suspected of holding weapons or explosives.)

She was the most suspect, because she was the only one who had a motive for the murder. (She was the one who was suspected more than anyone else was.)

The Adjective Suspicious—A Bit of a Chameleon

The adjective suspicious is often the other side of the equation from suspect: If I am suspicious of you, you are suspect. If I am suspicious that the meat might be bad, the meat is suspect. But on its own, the adjective suspicious can be a bit of a chameleon: 

• The adjective suspicious can sometimes mean that the person or behavior described is questionable in itself, but
• It can also mean that the person or behavior described is suspicious of someone or something else.

With the adjective suspicious, one must look to context to determine the meaning.

Examples:

The behavior of the man in the fedora and trenchcoat was suspicious. (The man was behaving suspiciously; his own behavior was questionable.)

He was a bitter and suspicious man. (The man was suspicious of others.)

I threw a suspicious glance in his direction. (I gave him a look that indicated that I was suspicious of him.)

Mnemonic device:

For suspect, think of a police lineup of suspects (the “bad guys”); think that you don’t want to accuse yourself of being a “bad guy.”

Suspicious, however, has its meaning determined by its context; it can be either active (suspecting someone or something else) or passive (being suspected by someone else).