belie

[ bih-lahy ]
See synonyms for: beliebeliesbelying on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),be·lied, be·ly·ing.
  1. to show to be false; contradict: His trembling hands belied his calm voice.

  2. to misrepresent: The newspaper belied the facts.

  1. to act unworthily according to the standards of (a tradition, one's ancestry, one's faith, etc.).

  2. Archaic. to lie about; slander.

Origin of belie

1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English belyen, Old English belēogan; see be-, lie1

synonym study For belie

1, 2. See misrepresent.

Other words for belie

Opposites for belie

Other words from belie

  • be·li·er, noun

Words Nearby belie

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use belie in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for belie

belie

/ (bɪˈlaɪ) /


verb-lies, -lying or -lied (tr)
  1. to show to be untrue; contradict

  2. to misrepresent; disguise the nature of: the report belied the real extent of the damage

  1. to fail to justify; disappoint

Origin of belie

1
Old English belēogan; related to Old Frisian biliuga, Old High German biliugan; see be-, lie 1

Derived forms of belie

  • belier, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012