Reputing

Part of speech: verb, adjective

Definitions

1. Considering or regarding a person or thing to be something, especially on the basis of general opinion or belief
2. Holding a belief that someone or something is a particular kind of thing, as is commonly said or thought
3. Deeming or reckoning a person or object to have a certain quality, often through widespread assumption

Etymology: "Reputing" is simply the present participle and gerund of "repute," so its story is really the story of the verb behind it. That verb came into English from Old French "reputer," which in turn descends from Latin "reputare," meaning "to count over, reckon, calculate, compute, think over, consider." The Latin word was built from "re-," meaning "again," and "putare," meaning "to think," so at its core it carries the sense of turning something over in the mind, weighing it up again before reaching a conclusion. That reckoning sense is still visible in the modern meaning. To repute something is to regard it as being a certain way, based on a judgment formed after consideration. English has long used the verb mostly in the passive, as in "he is reputed to be wealthy," where the idea of counting something as true survives in the phrase.

Synonyms: considering, deeming, regarding, judging, esteeming