%believ%

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Believed p. pr. & vb. n. Believing. ] [ OE. bileven (with pref. be- for AS. ge-), fr. AS. gel&unr_;fan, gel&unr_;fan; akin to D. gelooven, OHG. gilouban, G. glauben, OS. gil&unr_;bian, Goth. galaubjan, and Goth. liubs dear. See Lief, a., Leave, n. ] To exercise belief in; to credit upon the authority or testimony of another; to be persuaded of the truth of, upon evidence furnished by reasons, arguments, and deductions of the mind, or by circumstances other than personal knowledge; to regard or accept as true; to place confidence in; to think; to consider; as, to believe a person, a statement, or a doctrine. [ 1913 Webster ]

Our conqueror (whom I now
Of force believe almighty). Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets ? Acts xxvi. 27. [ 1913 Webster ]

Often followed by a dependent clause.
I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Acts viii. 37. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- See Expect. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. 1. To have a firm persuasion, esp. of the truths of religion; to have a persuasion approaching to certainty; to exercise belief or faith. [ 1913 Webster ]

Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. Mark ix. 24. [ 1913 Webster ]

With the heart man believeth unto righteousness. Rom. x. 10. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To think; to suppose. [ 1913 Webster ]

I will not believe so meanly of you. Fielding. [ 1913 Webster ]

To believe in. (a) To believe that the subject of the thought (if a person or thing) exists, or (if an event) that it has occurred, or will occur; -- as, to believe in the resurrection of the dead. “She does not believe in Jupiter.” J. H. Newman. (b) To believe that the character, abilities, and purposes of a person are worthy of entire confidence; -- especially that his promises are wholly trustworthy. “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.” John xiv. 1. (c) To believe that the qualities or effects of an action or state are beneficial: as, to believe in sea bathing, or in abstinence from alcoholic beverages. --
To believe on, to accept implicitly as an object of religious trust or obedience; to have faith in. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who believes; one who is persuaded of the truth or reality of some doctrine, person, or thing. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Theol.) One who gives credit to the truth of the Scriptures, as a revelation from God; a Christian; -- in a more restricted sense, one who receives Christ as his Savior, and accepts the way of salvation unfolded in the gospel. [ 1913 Webster ]

Thou didst open the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers. Book of Com. Prayer. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Eccl. Hist.) One who was admitted to all the rights of divine worship and instructed in all the mysteries of the Christian religion, in distinction from a catechumen, or one yet under instruction. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. That believes; having belief. -- Be*liev"ing*ly, adv. [1913 Webster]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Disbelieved p. pr. & vb. n. Disbelieving. ] Not to believe; to refuse belief or credence to; to hold not to be true or actual. [ 1913 Webster ]

Assertions for which there is abundant positive evidence are often disbelieved, on account of what is called their improbability or impossibility. J. S. Mill. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who disbelieves, or refuses belief; an unbeliever. Specifically, one who does not believe the Christian religion. I. Watts. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To pretend; -- often used with that, but often having the that omitted; as, he made believe he didn't hear her; or he made believe that he didn't hear her. [ PJC ]

a. 1. Feigned; insincere. “Make-believe reverence.” G. Eliot. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Imaginary; as, the child had a make-believe friend to whom he often talked. [ PJC ]

n. A feigning to believe, as in the play of children; a mere pretense; a fiction; an invention. “Childlike make-believe.” Tylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

To forswear self-delusion and make-believe. M. Arnold. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To believe erroneously, or in a false religion. “That misbelieving Moor.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who believes wrongly; one who holds a false religion. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Not believed; disbelieved. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who does not believe; an incredulous person; a doubter; a skeptic. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A disbeliever; especially, one who does not believe that the Bible is a divine revelation, and holds that Christ was neither a divine nor a supernatural person; an infidel; a freethinker. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- See Infidel. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Not believing; incredulous; doubting; distrusting; skeptical. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ 1913 Webster ]

2. Believing that the thing alleged is not true; disbelieving; especially, believing that the Bible is not a divine revelation, or that Christ was not a divine or a supernatural person. “Unbelieving Jews.” Acts xiv. 2. [ 1913 Webster ]

-- Un`be*liev"ing*ly adv. -- Un`be*liev"ing*ness, n. [ 1913 Webster ]

See abolishable.
See absolvable.
See absurd.
See abundant.
See accordant.
See adoptable.
See adventurous.
See affable.
See affectionate.
See afraid.
See alliable.
See allowable.
See alterable.
See ambiguous.
See ambitious.
See amendable.
See -American.
See amusive.
See angular.
See anxious.
See apocryphal.
See apostolic.
See apparent.
See appeasable.
See applausive.
See appreciable.
See apprehensible.
See apprehensive.
See approachable.
See artificial.
See artistic.
See assailable.
See attainable.
See attentive.
See authentic.
See available.
See bailable.
See bearable.
See beautiful.
See beliefful.
See believable.
See beneficial.
See benevolent.
See blamable.
See blemishable.
See blissful.
See boastful.
See bold.
See bookish.
See bounteous.
See bribable.
See brotherly.
See burdensome.
See businesslike.
See busy.
See candid.
See canonical.
See captious.
See careful.
See celestial.
See ceremonious.
See challengeable.
See changeable.
See chary.
See chastisable.
See cheerful.
See cheery.
See childish.
See chivalrous.
See choleric.
See christianlike.
See circumspect.
See civic.
See classible.
See classic.
See classical.
See cleanly.
See clear.
See clerical.
See clerklike.
See close.
See cloudy.
See clubbable.
See coagulable.
See cogitable.
See collectible.
See comic.
See commendable.
See commercial.
See communicable.
See communicative.
See compact.
See companionable.
See compassionate.
See compellable.
See competitive.
See complaisant.
See compliant. See complimentary.
See concealable.
See concurrent.
See conditionate.
See confinable.
See confutable.
See congealable.
See congenial.
See conjugal.
See conjunctive.
See conquerable.
See consecrate.
See containable.
See contaminate.
See contradictable.
See contrite.
See convenable.
See conventional.
See conversable.
See conversant.
See convertible.
See coquettish.
See cordial.
See corpulent.
See correspondent.
See corruptible.
See corruptive.
See costly.
See counselable.
See countable.
See counterfeit.
See courteous.
See courtierlike.
See courtly.
See crafty.
See creatable.
See critical.
See crystalline.
See cultivable.
See curious.
See customary.
See dangerous.
See daughterly.
See dead.
See deceivable.
See decidable.
See decipherable.
See declinable.
See decomposable.
See definable.
See delectable.
See deliberate.
See delightful.
See deliverable.
See democratic.
See demonstrable.
See demonstrative.
See deniable.
See derogatory.
See descendible.
See describable.
See desirable.
See desirous.
See despondent.
See devout.
See diaphanous.
See diligent.
See diminishable.
See discernible.
See disciplinable.
See discordant.
See discoverable.
See dissolvable.
See distinguishable.
See dividable.
See divine.
See domestic.
See doubtful.
[ 1913 Webster ]