reputed

adjective

re·​put·​ed ri-ˈpyü-təd How to pronounce reputed (audio)
1
: having a good repute : reputable
2
: being such according to reputation or general belief
a reputed mobster

Did you know?

Reputed is used constantly today by reporters, and almost always to describe suspected criminals—"the reputed mobster", "the reputed drug kingpin", "the reputed gang leader", etc. But the word shouldn't be left to journalists; your elderly aunt may, for instance, be reputed to have made a large fortune in oil, or to have had four husbands who all died mysteriously. Reputed is easy to confuse with reputable, and they used to mean the same thing—that is, "having a good reputation"—but it's become rare to hear reputed used with that meaning today.

Examples of reputed in a Sentence

She was hired for her reputed talents as a manager. this treatment is a reputed cure for colon cancer, but studies haven't confirmed that claim
Recent Examples on the Web Should Bordeaux wines from this vintage be regarded with less respect than those from other more reputed or ‘stellar’ years? Tom Mullen, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2024 Frances found the painting had somehow ended up in the hands of Joseph Covello Sr., a reputed lieutenant of the Gambino crime family. María Luisa Paúl, Washington Post, 30 Jan. 2024 And, with a reputed budget of two billion dollars, Norman and his colleagues seem determined to soak up financial losses and sweep away the existing structure of golf, which is dominated by the P.G.A., a not-for-profit organization based in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 20 July 2022 For a start, there was Scripture—above all, St. Paul (mentioned by the Wife of Bath), whose reputed declaration that women should not be allowed to speak in church lies behind the Roman Catholic ban on female priests. Joan Acocella, The New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2023 The son, Ovidio Guzman, is a reputed drug trafficker wanted by the United States. Arkansas Online, 8 Jan. 2023 In May, four reputed members of the Goonies, a faction of the Gangster Disciples, are scheduled to go on trial in a string of killings and other shootings in the Englewood neighborhood from 2014 to 2016. Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 15 Nov. 2022 Day arrests of reputed gamblers in a nationwide sports betting ring. Richard Goldstein, New York Times, 24 Aug. 2022 Paul Graham, a reputed venture capitalist whose been pro-Musk during the Twitter takeover, was among those temporarily suspended for talking about Mastodon. Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz, 19 Dec. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reputed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1532, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of reputed was circa 1532

Dictionary Entries Near reputed

Cite this Entry

“Reputed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reputed. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

reputed

adjective
re·​put·​ed
ri-ˈpyüt-əd
1
: having a good reputation
a highly reputed lawyer
2
: believed by most people to be such
the movie was a reputed success

More from Merriam-Webster on reputed

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