opinion

American  

[uh-pin-yuhn] / əˈpɪn jən /

noun

opinions plural

1. a belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.

   Synonyms:

   impression, idea, notion, persuasion

2. a personal view, attitude, or appraisal.

3. the formal expression of a professional judgment.

   to ask for a second medical opinion.

4. Law. the formal statement by a judge or court of the reasoning and the principles of law used in reaching a decision of a case.

5. a judgment or estimate of a person or thing with respect to character, merit, etc..

   to forfeit someone's good opinion.

6. Archaic. a favorable estimate; esteem.

   I haven't much of an opinion of him.

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opinion British  

/ əˈpɪnjən /

noun

1. judgment or belief not founded on certainty or proof

2. the prevailing or popular feeling or view

   public opinion

3. evaluation, impression, or estimation of the value or worth of a person or thing

4. an evaluation or judgment given by an expert

   a medical opinion

5. the advice given by a barrister or counsel on a case submitted to him or her for a view on the legal points involved

6. a point open to question

7. to believe that

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opinion Idioms  

1. see form an opinion; matter of opinion.

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Synonym Usage

Opinion, sentiment, view are terms for one's conclusion about something. An opinion is a belief or judgment that falls short of absolute conviction, certainty, or positive knowledge; it is a conclusion that certain facts, ideas, etc., are probably true or likely to prove so: political opinions; an opinion about art; In my opinion this is true. Sentiment (usually pl. ) refers to a rather fixed conviction, usually based on feeling or emotion rather than reasoning: These are my sentiments. View is an estimate of something, an intellectual judgment, a critical survey based on a mental examination, particularly of a public matter: views on governmental planning.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preopinion
  noun
• underopinion
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• opinions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of opinion

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin opīniōn- (stem of opīniō ), derivative of opīnārī “to think, deem”

Explanation

An opinion is a belief or attitude about something that isn't necessarily based on facts. It's your opinion that dogs make better pets than cats, but your sister thinks that cats are superior. Too bad your parents' opinion is that pets are too expensive. You may have an opinion about a celebrity that I don't share. There's no way to prove who's right and who's wrong. Those are our thoughts about her, and that's the way it is. Ironically, when a judge decides a case, his or her ruling is referred to as an opinion. Even though what the judge says will become a matter of law, it's still just their opinion, based on what was presented by the two sides in a trial.

Example Sentences

The Framers of the 14th Amendment extended that promise to ‘every free-born person in this land,'” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the majority opinion.

From Salon • Jun. 30, 2026

"Citizenship, then and now, was the right to have rights - to freely participate in our political community," Justice Roberts wrote in the majority opinion.

From BBC • Jun. 30, 2026

One of the silver linings of so many people working from home during the pandemic, in my opinion, is that it helped normalize doing a lot of life admin while working remotely.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 30, 2026

Kavanaugh pushed back on that claim in the majority opinion.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 30, 2026

The sinking of the Lusitania shocked the American people, helped turn public opinion against Germany, and almost caused the United States to break off relations with Germany.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman

Related Words

• assessment
• assumption
• attitude
• conclusion
• feeling
• idea
• impression
• judgment
• mind
• notion
• point of view
• reaction
• sentiment
• speculation
• theory
• thought
• view
• viewpoint