[bi-leef] 
| 1. | something believed; an opinion or conviction: a belief that the earth is flat. |
| 2. | confidence in the truth or existence of something not immediately susceptible to rigorous proof: a statement unworthy of belief. |
| 3. | confidence; faith; trust: a child's belief in his parents. |
| 4. | a religious tenet or tenets; religious creed or faith: the Christian belief. |
| be·lief (bĭ-lēf') n.
[Middle English bileve, alteration (influenced by bileven, to believe) of Old English gelēafa; see leubh- in Indo-European roots.] Synonyms: These nouns denote mental acceptance of the truth, actuality, or validity of something: a statement unworthy of belief; an idea steadily gaining credence; testimony meriting credit; has no faith in a liar's assertions. See Also Synonyms at opinion. |
belief
a mental attitude of acceptance or assent toward a proposition without the full intellectual knowledge required to guarantee its truth. Believing is either an intellectual judgment or, as the 18th-century Scottish Skeptic David Hume maintained, a special sort of feeling with overtones that differ from those of disbelief. Beliefs have been distinguished according to their degree of certainty: a surmise or suspicion, an opinion, or a conviction. Belief becomes knowledge only when the truth of a proposition becomes evident to the believer. Belief in someone or something is basically different from belief that a proposition is true
Learn more about belief with a free trial on Britannica.com.