insinuate
in-SIN-yoo-aytverbMeaning to hint at something unpleasant without saying it outright
Memory hook in-sin-U-ATE: “so... YOU ATE them?”. Pip looks at the empty cookie jar, then slowly at Kai, and says, “Hmm, someone ate them...” He does not accuse Kai directly; he insinuates it.
Are you trying to insinuate that I ate the last cookie?
In context Rex never said outright that Lila had copied her essay; instead he insinuated it, raising his eyebrows and asking how she had finished so fast.
Similar imply, hint, suggest, intimate
Opposite declare, state plainly
From Latin insinuare, “to wind one’s way in”: in- (in) + sinuare (to curve), from sinus (a curve).