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

See Examples For:

opinion opinions

Players travelling and the chance of injuries at such an early stage of the season is completely bonkers in my opinion.

From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026

There was also another complication for consumers expecting professionally carved chocolate: Packaging included in the court’s opinion labels the jack-o’-lantern image a “DECORATING SUGGESTION.”

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026

In his opinion, some of the recent discussions about AI risk have approached the territory of “science fiction.”

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026

The paper’s opinion desk was also wiped out.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

Madame Babushkinov had already made up her mind, and mere facts could not sway her opinion.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

This screen can be part of your own research as you form your own opinions about which companies are likely to remain competitive and maintain their policies for dividend increases.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026

There are so many choices to make when it comes to what to feed your children, plus children can have strong opinions about what they will and won’t eat.

From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026

So instead, Raman is positioning herself as the anti-establishment candidate and seeking to capitalize on the strong negative opinions of Bass many Pratt voters hold, Raman campaign insiders say.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026

David Wilson, emeritus professor of criminology at Birmingham City University, believes it's unlikely that the report will reverse hard-baked opinions.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

Eisman quickly established himself as one of the few analysts at Oppenheimer whose opinions might stir the markets.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Related Words

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