definitions

belie

[ bih-lahy ]
/ bɪˈlaɪ /
||

verb (used with object), be·lied, be·ly·ing.

to show to be false; contradict: His trembling hands belied his calm voice.
to misrepresent: The newspaper belied the facts.
to act unworthily according to the standards of (a tradition, one's ancestry, one's faith, etc.).
Archaic. to lie about; slander.

RELATED WORDS

negate, contradict, repudiate, mislead, misstate, distort, contravene, deny, disagree, negative, explode, controvert, oppose, confute, gainsay, pervert, hide, disguise, color, warp

Nearby words

belgorod-dnestrovsky, belgrade, belgrano, belgravia, belial, belie, belief, believe, believe it or not, believe one's ears, believing

Origin of belie

before 1000; Middle English belyen, Old English belēogan. See be-, lie1

SYNONYMS FOR belie

1 refute, disprove, controvert, repudiate, confute, gainsay.
1, 2 See misrepresent.

ANTONYMS FOR belie

1 prove, verify, support.

Related forms

be·li·er, nounun·be·lied, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for belied

British Dictionary definitions for belied

belie

/ (bɪˈlaɪ) /

verb -lies, -lying or -lied (tr)

to show to be untrue; contradict
to misrepresent; disguise the nature ofthe report belied the real extent of the damage
to fail to justify; disappoint

Derived Forms

belier, noun

Word Origin for belie

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