English Dictionary

Definition of “believe”

believe (bɪˈliːv Pronunciation for believe

Definitions

verb

  1. tr; may take a clause as object to accept (a statement, supposition, or opinion) as true ⇒ I believe God exists
  2. tr to accept the statement or opinion of (a person) as true
  3. intr foll by in to be convinced of the truth or existence (of) ⇒ to believe in fairies
  4. intr to have religious faith
  5. when tr, takes a clause as object to think, assume, or suppose ⇒ I believe that he has left already
  6. tr; foll by of; used with can, could, would, etc to think that someone is able to do (a particular action) ⇒ I wouldn't have believed it of him

Derived Forms

beˈlievaˌbility noun
beˈlievable adjective
beˈlievably adverb
beˈliever noun
beˈlieving noun, adjective

Word Origin

Old English beliefan

Synonyms

View thesaurus entry
= accept, hold, buy, trust, credit, depend on, rely on, swallow, count on, buy into, have faith in, swear by, be certain of, be convinced of, place confidence in, presume true, take as gospel, take on,

Quotations including 'believe'

  • "To believe with certainty we must begin with doubting" Stanislaus I of Poland
  • "Man can believe the impossible, but man can never believe the improbable" Oscar Wilde
  • "We can believe what we choose. We are answerable for what we choose to believe" Cardinal Newman
  • "It is necessary to the happiness of man that he be mentally faithful to himself. Infidelity does not consist in believing, or in disbelieving, it consists in professing to believe what one does not believe" Thomas Paine
  • "I can believe anything, provided that it is incredible" Oscar Wilde
  • "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief" Bible: St. Mark
  • "Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe" Bible: St. John
  • "Though ye believe not me, believe the works" Bible: St. John

Translations for 'believe'

  • British English: believePronunciation for believe If you believe that something is true, you think that it is true.Experts believe that the drought will be extensive.bɪˈliːv VERBthink
  • Arabic: يُصَدِّقُPronunciation for يُصَدِّقُ
  • Brazilian Portuguese: acreditarPronunciation for acreditar
  • Chinese: 相信Pronunciation for 相信
  • Croatian: smatratiPronunciation for smatrati
  • Czech: věřitPronunciation for věřit uvěřit
  • Danish: troPronunciation for tro
  • Dutch: gelovenPronunciation for gelovenvoor waar aannemen
  • European Spanish: creerPronunciation for creer
  • Finnish: uskoaPronunciation for uskoa
  • French: croirePronunciation for croire
  • German: glaubenPronunciation for glauben
  • Greek: πιστεύωPronunciation for πιστεύω
  • Italian: crederePronunciation for credere
  • Japanese: 信じるPronunciation for 信じる
  • Korean: ...을 믿다Pronunciation for ...을 믿다
  • Norwegian: troPronunciation for tro
  • Polish: uwierzyćPronunciation for uwierzyć wierzyć
  • Portuguese: acreditarPronunciation for acreditar
  • Romanian: a fi de părere
  • Russian: считатьPronunciation for считать
  • Spanish: creerPronunciation for creer
  • Swedish: troPronunciation for tro
  • Thai: เชื่อPronunciation for เชื่อ
  • Turkish: inanmakPronunciation for inanmak
  • Ukrainian: вважати
  • Vietnamese: tinPronunciation for tin
  • British English: believePronunciation for believe If you believe in things such as God, fairies, or miracles, you are sure that they exist or happen.I don't believe in ghosts.bɪˈliːv VERBin God etc
  • Arabic: يُؤْمِنُPronunciation for يُؤْمِنُ
  • Brazilian Portuguese: crerPronunciation for crer
  • Chinese: 笃信宗教Pronunciation for 笃信宗教
  • Croatian: vjerovatiPronunciation for vjerovatismatrati
  • Czech: věřitPronunciation for věřit --
  • Danish: troPronunciation for tro
  • Dutch: gelovenPronunciation for gelovengelovig zijn
  • European Spanish: creerPronunciation for creer
  • Finnish: uskoaPronunciation for uskoa
  • French: croirePronunciation for croire
  • German: glaubenPronunciation for glauben
  • Greek: πιστεύωPronunciation for πιστεύω
  • Italian: crederePronunciation for credere
  • Japanese: 信仰するPronunciation for 信仰する
  • Korean: 믿다Pronunciation for 믿다
  • Norwegian: troPronunciation for tro
  • Polish: uwierzyćPronunciation for uwierzyć wierzyć
  • Portuguese: crerPronunciation for crer
  • Romanian: a crede
  • Russian: веритьPronunciation for верить
  • Spanish: creerPronunciation for creer
  • Swedish: troPronunciation for tro
  • Thai: เลื่อมใส ศรัทธาPronunciation for เลื่อมใส ศรัทธา
  • Turkish: inandırmakPronunciation for inandırmak
  • Ukrainian: вірити повірити
  • Vietnamese: tin tưởngPronunciation for tin tưởng

Example Sentences Including 'believe'

As Mitford wrote to Hill:'I believe people only want to laugh after all.
Country Life (2004)
But the Grampian Health Board believe there may be more to come.
Glasgow Herald (2001)
Happiness, she would have come to believe , was something she did not deserve.
Dorothy Rowe BEYOND FEAR (2002)
I mean, human rights abuses...' I broke in: `I don't believe that.
Hugo Wilcken THE EXECUTION (2002)
If you don't believe me, go up there now and spend an hour in her company.
Jennifer Fallon TREASON KEEP (2001)
In fact, gardaí believe the man was not in possession of any drugs.
Irish Times (2002)
That would mean Florida Pearl staying even further than three and a quarter miles, something the sceptics cannot believe.
Irish Times (2002)
The rankings would have you believe the champ has only to turn up to win.
Glasgow Herald (2001)
You wish me to believe in your god, yet you resent me questioning anything I do not understand.
Jennifer Fallon TREASON KEEP (2001)

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