believe
verb /bɪˈliːv/
/bɪˈliːv/
not used in the progressive tensesVerb Forms
Idioms Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they believe | /bɪˈliːv/ /bɪˈliːv/ |
| he / she / it believes | /bɪˈliːvz/ /bɪˈliːvz/ |
| past simple believed | /bɪˈliːvd/ /bɪˈliːvd/ |
| past participle believed | /bɪˈliːvd/ /bɪˈliːvd/ |
| -ing form believing | /bɪˈliːvɪŋ/ /bɪˈliːvɪŋ/ |
- [transitive] to feel certain that something is true or that somebody is telling you the truth
- believe somebody I don't believe you!
- The man claimed to be a social worker and the old woman believed him.
- Do you really believe her?
- Believe me, she's not right for you.
- believe something I believed his lies for years.
- I find that hard to believe.
- Don't believe a word of it (= don't believe any part of what somebody is saying).
- believe (that)… People used to believe (that) the earth was flat.
- He refused to believe (that) his son was involved in drugs.
- I do believe you’re right (= I think something is true, even though it is surprising).
Extra ExamplesTopics Doubt, guessing and certaintya1- I'm inclined to believe you.
- It's hard to believe that this campaign has been going on for ten years.
- It was generally believed that evil spirits lived in the forest.
- The ad led us to believe (= made us think) that all prices had been cut.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- deeply
- fervently
- firmly
- …
- cannot
- be hard to
- give somebody to
- …
- can hardly believe something
- can scarcely believe something
- not believe a word of something
- …
- [intransitive, transitive] to think that something is true or possible, although you are not completely certain
- ‘Where does she come from?’ ‘Spain, I believe.’
- ‘Does he still work there?’ ‘I believe so/not.’
- believe (that)… Police believe (that) the man may be armed.
- Experts believe that the diamond is the only one of its kind.
- l firmly believe that she is still alive.
- There is no reason to believe he is dangerous.
- it is believed (that)… It is believed that the couple have left the country.
- It is widely believed that he was forced to resign.
- believe something Few people believe the claim that the cost of living has not risen since last year.
- be believed to be, have, etc. something The vases are believed to be worth over $20 000 each.
- be believed + adj. Three sailors are missing, believed drowned.
Synonyms thinkthink- believe
- feel
- reckon
- be under the impression
- think to have an idea that something is true or possible, although you are not completely certain; to have a particular opinion about somebody/something:
- Do you think (that) they’ll come?
- Well, I like it. What do you think?
- believe to have an idea that something is true or possible, although you are not completely certain; to have a particular opinion about somebody/something:
- Police believe (that) the man may be armed.
- feel to have a particular opinion about something that has happened or about what you/somebody ought to do:
- We all felt (that) we were unlucky to lose.
- reckon (informal) to think that something is true or possible:
- I reckon (that) I’m going to get that job.
- be under the impression that… to have an idea that something is true:
- I was under the impression that the work had already been completed.
- to think/believe/feel/reckon/be under the impression that…
- It is thought/believed/reckoned that…
- to be thought/believed/felt/reckoned to be something
- to think/believe/feel something about somebody/something
- to sincerely/honestly/seriously/mistakenly think/believe/feel
Extra ExamplesTopics Opinion and argumenta1, Doubt, guessing and certaintya1- We have reason to believe that the escaped prisoner may be hiding in this house.
- No one seriously believes that this war will happen.
- Paul thinks he's happy, but his mother believes otherwise.
- [transitive] believe (that)… to have the opinion that something is right or true
- The party believes (that) education is the most important issue facing the government.
- She believes that killing animals for food or fur is completely immoral.
- I strongly believe that competition is a good thing.
- She truly believes that love can change the world.
Language Bank according toaccording toReporting someone’s opinion- Photography is, according to Vidal, the art form of untalented people.
- For Vidal, photography is the art form of untalented people.
- His view is that photography is not art but merely the mechanical reproduction of images.
- Smith takes the view that photography is both an art and a science.
- In Brown’s view, photography should be treated as a legitimate art in its own right.
- James is of the opinion that a good painter can always be a good photographer if he or she so decides.
- Emerson believed that a photograph should only reflect what the human eye can see.
Language Bank opinionopinionGiving your personal opinion- In my opinion, everyone should have some understanding of science.
- Everyone should, in my opinion, have some understanding of science.
- It seems to me that many people in this country have a poor understanding of science.
- This is, in my view, the result of a failure of the scientific community to get its message across.
- Another reason why so many people have such a poor understanding of science is, I believe, the lack of adequate funding for science in schools.
- Smith argues that science is separate from culture. My own view is that science belongs with literature, art, philosophy and religion as an integral part of our culture.
- In this writer’s opinion, the more the public know about science, the less they will fear and distrust it.
Extra ExamplesTopics Opinion and argumenta1- I personally believe that it's important.
- I've long believed that a good reputation is the most valuable asset you can have in business.
- I believe that we have a responsibility towards the less fortunate in society.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- deeply
- fervently
- firmly
- …
- cannot
- be hard to
- give somebody to
- …
- can hardly believe something
- can scarcely believe something
- not believe a word of something
- …
- [transitive] don’t/can’t believe used to say that you are surprised or annoyed at something
- believe (that)… She couldn’t believe (that) it was all happening again.
- I don't believe I'm doing this!
- believe how, what, etc… I can't believe how much better I feel.
- I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- deeply
- fervently
- firmly
- …
- cannot
- be hard to
- give somebody to
- …
- can hardly believe something
- can scarcely believe something
- not believe a word of something
- …
- [intransitive] to have a religious faith
- The god appears only to those who believe.
feel certain
think possible
have opinion
be surprised/annoyed
religion
Word Originlate Old English belȳfan, belēfan, alteration of gelēfan, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch geloven and German glauben.
Idioms
believe it or not
- (informal) used to introduce information that is true but that may surprise people
- Believe it or not, he asked me to marry him!
believe (you) me
- (informal) used to emphasize that you strongly believe what you are saying
- You haven't heard the last of this, believe you me!
don’t you believe it!
- (informal) used to tell somebody that something is definitely not true
- ‘She wouldn’t do a thing like that.’ ‘Don’t you believe it!’
give somebody to believe/understand (that)…
- [often passive] (formal) to make somebody believe/understand something
- I was given to understand that she had resigned.
I don’t believe it!
- (informal) used to say that you are surprised or annoyed about something
- I don't believe it! What are you doing here?
if you believe that, you’ll believe anything
- (informal) used to say that you think somebody is stupid if they believe that something is true
- ‘He promised not to do it again.’ ‘Sure, and if you believe that, you’ll believe anything.’
make believe (that…)
- to pretend that something is true related noun make-believe
not believe your ears/eyes
- (informal) to be very surprised at something you hear/see
- I couldn't believe my eyes when she walked in.
seeing is believing
- (saying) used to say that somebody will have to believe that something is true when they see it, although they do not think it is true now
would you believe (it)?
- (informal) used to show that you are surprised and annoyed about something
- And, would you believe, he didn't even apologize!
you/you’d better believe it!
- (informal) used to tell somebody that something is definitely true
- ‘He’s not a bad player, is he?’ ‘You’d better believe it!’