believe
/bɪˈliv/ verb A1- To accept as true, particularly without absolute certainty (i.e., as opposed to knowing).
- To accept that someone is telling the truth.
- To have been convinced by rational means to accept the truth of a proposition.
- To have been influenced by arational means (such as emotional experience, the imagination of need, etc.) to accept the truth of a proposition.
- To have religious faith; to believe in a greater truth.
- To opine, think, reckon.
- To ascribe existence to.
- To believe that (something) is right or desirable.
Plural believe · He/she/it believes · Past believed · Past participle believed · -ing form believing
Verb forms
- Base form
- believe
- He/she/it
- believes
- Past
- believed
- Past participle
- believed
- -ing form
- believing
From the library
“I don’t know the meaning of half those long words, and, what’s more, I don’t believe you do either!” And the Eaglet bent down its head to hide a smile: some of the other birds tittered audibly.
Hardly knowing what she did, she picked up a little bit of stick, and held it out to the puppy; whereupon the puppy jumped into the air off all its feet at once, with a yelp of delight, and rushed at the stick, and made believe to worry it; then Alice dodged behind a great thistle, to keep herself from being run over; and the moment she appeared on the other side, the puppy made another rush at the stick, and tumbled head over heels in its hurry to get hold of it; then Alice, thinking it was very like having a game of play with a cart-horse, and expecting every moment to be trampled under its feet, ran round the thistle again; then the puppy began a series of short charges at the stick, running a very little way forwards each time and a long way back, and barking hoarsely all the while, till at last it sat down a good way off, panting, with its tongue hanging out of its mouth, and its great eyes half shut.
“I don’t believe it,” said the Pigeon; “but if they do, why then they’re a kind of serpent, that’s all I can say.”
“I’m glad they’ve begun asking riddles.—I believe I can guess that,” she added aloud.
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