believe
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
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to have confidence or faith in the truth of (a positive assertion, story, etc.); give credence to.
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to have confidence in the assertions of (a person).
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to have a conviction that (a person or thing) is, has been, or will be engaged in a given action or involved in a given situation.
The fugitive is believed to be headed for the Mexican border.
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to suppose or assume; understand (usually followed by a noun clause).
I believe that he has left town.
verb phrase
idioms
verb
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(tr; may take a clause as object) to accept (a statement, supposition, or opinion) as true
I believe God exists
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(tr) to accept the statement or opinion of (a person) as true
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to be convinced of the truth or existence (of)
to believe in fairies
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(intr) to have religious faith
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(when tr, takes a clause as object) to think, assume, or suppose
I believe that he has left already
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(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
Usage
Spelling tips for believe The word believe is hard to spell for two reasons. First, because it can be hard to remember the order of the i and e. Sometimes people want to spell it beleive, which is incorrect. Second, because it is pronounced [ bih-leev ], which makes you think there may be a second i in the word, as in bilieve. How to spell believe: The easiest way to remember how to spell believe is with the classic mnemonic device: “I before E, except after C." Believ[ing] is an important part of "being alive", which reminds you that the first syllable is be, not bi.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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believabilitynoun
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believablenessnoun
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believernoun
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believingnoun
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superbelievablenessnoun
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prebelieveverb
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believableadjective
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half-believedadjective
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half-believingadjective
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superbelievableadjective
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well-believedadjective
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believablyadverb
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believinglyadverb
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superbelievablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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believesimple
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believessimple
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have believedperfect
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has believedperfect
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am believingprogressive
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are believingprogressive
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is believingprogressive
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have been believingperfect progressive
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has been believingperfect progressive
Past
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believedsimple
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had believedperfect
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was believingprogressive
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were believingprogressive
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had been believingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of believe
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English bileven, equivalent to bi- be- + leven, Old English (Anglian) gelēfan (cognate with Dutch gelooven, German glauben, Gothic galaubjan )
Explanation
If you believe something, you think it’s true. If you are easily duped then you might believe your little sister when she says a thief broke into the house and ate all your candy. Believe comes from old German words meaning to have trust. Belief doesn’t require proof, just acceptance. If you’re on a jury and the prosecution and defense present two different versions of what happened, you have to decide which side you believe. To believe can also mean having confidence. If you believe in me, it doesn’t mean that you think I’m real (unless I’m a ghost). It means you think I can do what I set out to do.
Vocabulary lists containing believe
Spelling Practice, Unit 3
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Spelling Practice 1, Unit 4
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Spelling Practice 2, Unit 4
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A spokesperson said: "We continue to believe that the L&VW plan is by far the fastest and most reliable route to solving Thames Water's complex problems and improving outcomes for customers and the environment."
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
If Hertz does decide you’re responsible, believe me, they’ll contact you.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
"We believe that after five years we need to talk, we need to listen, and they need to explain," he said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
A woman, whom officials believe is the suspect’s wife, sustained injuries, according to ABC7.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
“And so now I have to ask you if you still believe that your relationship with him used to be ‘easier’ and ‘simpler.’
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Yahya believes the agreement is "deeply disadvantageous" to Lebanon.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Israeli intelligence believes Iran moved thousands of uranium-enrichment centrifuges into tunnels deep inside Pickaxe Mountain last fall.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
“Kimi will generate more use cases” for AI as developers utilize the model’s lower-cost structure, Sen believes, increasing demand for inference as well.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
Former England wing Chris Ashton believes this pattern of ill-discipline is a weakness opposition teams will look to exploit.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
Unlike lying, an imagined reality is something that everyone believes in, and as long as this communal belief persists, the imagined reality exerts force in the world.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
It was believed to be the only red card ever handed out after a World Cup final, and the ignominy it brought was well-deserved.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
In the abiding spirit of the Americans who believed in and built that promise, this year’s series on how to think about constitutional meaning is limited only by what you, the people, can imagine.
From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026
He told the Journal in 2022 that he believed Manson’s connection to the property was “irrelevant” and “ancient history,” adding that it had “absolutely no impact on my life whatsoever.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
The company places a premium on keeping turnover low, a strategy its founders believed would reduce costs associated with training new hires and lead to better customer service.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
Mrs. Dannenberg’s face softens, losing the grim determination of a business dealing that she had when she believed we were from the cemetery.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
“Why aren’t we believing the kids? They are adults.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
All this time, he had hardened his heart against his parents, believing they had abandoned him and Asa.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
"The people who bet aren't actually financially stable. They usually want to change their lives and end up believing this misleading advertising," Ana Clara Costa, a 21-year-old market vendor in Copacabana, told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
"I went from surprised, shocked, not believing what had happened to really angry at one point."
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
I shake with fear as we head home, hardly believing what I’ve just heard.
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
