opinion

[uh-pin-yuhn]

noun

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.

opinion

/ 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

Other Word Forms

• preopinion noun
• underopinion noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of opinion¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of opinion¹

C13: via Old French from Latin opīniō belief, from opīnārī to think; see _opine

Idioms and Phrases

see form an opinion; matter of opinion.

Synonym Study

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.

Example Sentences

The Hong Kong Centre for Human Rights, a group of rights advocates, said that the national-security laws may keep people from expressing opinions about what happened.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“Lately, a lot of professional people have an opinion of what people should and shouldn’t do, what they should and shouldn’t like, how they should dress,” she said while accepting her award.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“After having knocked thousands of doors across the state, talking about really combative issues, it’s clear that people have a plurality of opinions and thoughts,” Behn said.

Read more on Salon

"In my opinion, it's him that these women should be scared of."

Read more on BBC

Yet Beijing chose to activate mechanisms that mobilize public opinion—indirectly shaping the behavior of businesses and consumers—and afford the government plausible deniability.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

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