english
1
general::
to believe something
believe
to be sure that something is true or that someone is telling the truth:
• I believed her when she said that she loved me. • Don’t believe anything he tells you.
accept
to believe that something is true, especially because someone has persuaded you to believe it:
• His wife accepted his explanation for why he was late. • Leah had slowly come to accept her brother’s version of events.
take sb’s word for it
especially spoken to believe what someone says is true, even though you have no proof or experience of it:
• I don’t know anything about him, so I’ll just have to take your word for it. • You don’t have to take my word for it – go and see for yourself. • ‘Cakes are very easy to make.’ ‘I’ll take your word for it.’
give somebody the benefit of the doubt
to believe what someone says, even though you think it might not be true:
• Unless you have proof, you should give him the benefit of the doubt.
to believe something that is untrue
be taken in
( also fall for something informal ) to be tricked into believing something that is not true:
• A lot of people were taken in by these claims. • I can’t believe she fell for that old excuse!
swallow
informal to believe a story or explanation that is not true, especially when this makes you seem silly:
• His aunt had swallowed his story unquestioningly. • Police refused to swallow his story, and put him in a cell.
Longman-Thesaurus
2
general::
verb ADV. firmly, really, seriously (only used with negatives), sincerely He firmly believed that he was right. No one seriously believes that this war will happen. | mistakenly VERB + BELIEVE can't/cannot, could not I couldn't believe what I was hearing. | be hard to It's hard to believe that this campaign has been going on for ten years. | give sb to The boss gave me to believe that we would all get a pay rise. | have reason to We have reason to believe that the escaped prisoner may be hiding in this house. | be inclined to I'm inclined to believe you. | lead sb to The advertisement led us to believe that all prices had been cut. PHRASES can/could hardly/scarcely believe sth, not believe a word of sth I didn't believe a word of what he said.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
3
general::
In addition to the idioms beginning with BELIEVE, Also see LEAD ONE TO BELIEVE; MAKE BELIEVE; ‘ D BETTER BELIEVE IT. Also see SEEING IS BELIEVING.
American Heritage Idioms
4
general::
believe in sth
1. to be certain that something exists
• Do you believe in ghosts?, believe in sth
2. to be confident that something is effective and right
• They don't believe in living together before marriage.
• He believes in saying what he thinks., believe in sb
to trust someone because you think that they can do something well or that they are a good person
• [ R ]: Gradually, since her divorce, she's beginning to believe in herself again.
Cambridge-Phrasal Verbs
5
general::
verb
think:
I believe he is telling the truth.
Simple Definitions