Idioms

belief

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beggar belief

To defy attempts at description; to be difficult or impossible to describe or explain. The spectacular vista at the Grand Canyon beggars belief. My boss's incompetence is astounding. It truly beggars all belief. My mother loves decorating for Christmas, so during the holidays, her house is fit for Santa himself. It truly beggars belief.
See also: beggar, belief

beyond belief

Inconceivable; outside of the realm of imagination, expectation, or anticipation. I find it simply beyond belief the greed of all these big corporations. That film was amazing, it was actually beyond belief! His prowess on the balance beam is beyond belief. I think really think you'll see him competing in the next Olympics!
See also: belief, beyond

cling to (one's) beliefs

To remain devoted to or entrenched in one's convictions, principles, or opinions, especially in a desperate or obtuse manner. In this ever-changing world, you can't just stubbornly cling to your old beliefs. You have to be flexible and able to adapt, or you're going to get left behind by the younger generations. If that corporate bigwig is still clinging to his beliefs that he is immune from prosecution, he's in for a rude awakening! When have you ever known Uncle Ned to change? That man will cling to his beliefs until the end of time.
See also: belief, cling, to

cling to the/(one's) belief that (something is the case)

To remain devoted to or entrenched in one's conviction or opinion that something is true, especially in a desperate or obtuse manner. A shocking amount of people still cling to the belief that the Earth is flat. That corporate bigwig is still clinging to his belief that he is immune from prosecution. I know this has been an exhausting, arduous process, but we must cling to the belief that things will work out in our favor!
See also: belief, cling, that, to

contrary to popular belief

Opposite to what is popularly or generally expected or believed. Usually used to introduce such a statement. Contrary to popular belief, higher taxes end up benefiting people more than lower ones. Contrary to popular belief, it's OK to cry. It's better to get that emotional energy out than let it get stuck in your body. Contrary to popular belief, Frankenstein is actually the inventor, not the monster, in Mary Shelley's book.
See also: belief, contrary, popular, to

restore (one's) belief in (someone or something)

To cause one to trust or have faith in someone or something again. I must say, Richard, this whole situation has made us very wary. It will take some diligent work on your part to restore our belief in you. The success of their recent product has restored investors' belief in the company.
See also: belief, restore

to the best of (one's) belief

As far as one is aware; according to one's genuine knowledge or opinion. The shopkeeper assured investigators that, to the best of his belief, he had not seen the suspect pass through that morning. To the best of my belief, we should be done with the seminar around lunchtime.
See also: belief, best, of, to

to the best of (one's) knowledge

As far as one is aware; according to one's genuine knowledge or opinion. The shopkeeper assured investigators that, to the best of his knowledge, he had not seen the suspect pass through that morning. To the best of my knowledge, we should be done with the seminar around lunchtime.
See also: best, knowledge, of, to
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

restore someone's trust in something

 and restore someone's belief in something; restore someone's faith in something
to reinstate someone's belief, faith, trust, etc., in something. I knew that a good performance on the test would restore my parents' belief in me. Her faith was restored in the government.
See also: restore, trust
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

beggar belief (or description)

be too extraordinary to be believed (or described).
See also: beggar, belief
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

beggar beˈlief/deˈscription

be too strange and unusual to be believed/described: It beggars belief that no one knew she was stealing money for so long.The sight of him completely covered with mud and oil beggared description.

beyond beˈlief

(in a way that is) too great, difficult, etc. to be believed: Dissatisfaction with the government has grown beyond belief.icy air that was cold beyond belief
See also: belief, beyond

to the best of your beˈlief/ˈknowledge

as far as you know: He never made a will, to the best of my knowledge.
See also: belief, best, knowledge, of, to

contrary to popular beˈlief/oˈpinion

although it is not what most people consider to be true: Contrary to popular belief, many cats dislike milk.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
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References in periodicals archive
Significant contributors to pain control include understanding the cause of pain, knowing a patient's pain beliefs, and having knowledge about coping mechanisms for dealing with pain.
Any emotion that doesn't serve you is a limiting belief. A limiting belief can stall your progress.
It is necessary, then, for us to have the freedom to seek and choose our beliefs, religious and non-religious.
Garety, Kuipers, Fowler, Freeman, and Bebbington (2001) proposed a two-stage model for symptoms of psychosis, and Freeman, Garety, Kuipers, Fowler, and Bebbington (2002) demonstrated how the model could operate for persecutory delusions (note that we are choosing this model based on its structure and not necessarily to equate ghost belief with delusions).
This book explores the psychology of belief-how beliefs are formed, how they are influenced both by internal factors, such as perception, memory, reason, emotion, and prior beliefs, as well as external factors, such as experience, identification with a group, social pressure, and manipulation.
In item 1, 87.0 % of the participants agreed that "Children learn English more easily than adults "showing their belief that they would have been more successful in learning the language if they had started learning the language at an earlier stage.
The teacher speedily solves the questions and clears the chalk board." At the end of experiment, the same student expressed his belief in these words, "I have no issue with learning of mathematics.
Those responsible for creating this forum are right to ask after the relationship between belief and intolerance.
'It attributes truth to a belief that has no basis on reason or Catholic teaching; it seems to believe more in the ability of evil sources to inflict harm than in God's almighty power to prevent it,' Belizar said.
So do political beliefs fall within the category of philosophical belief?
In the paper, "Network Science on Belief System Dynamics Under Logic Constraints," which appeared in Science, Friedkin and his coauthors extend that opinion dynamics model to cover belief systems composed of interdependent beliefs.
And what happens when our brain gets attached to these false beliefs, when counter beliefs are brought to life and our internal beliefs are challenged?
Christians also embrace New Age beliefs. According to the Pew study, 61 percent of Americans who identify as Christian also buy into at least one of the following decidedly New Age/pagan beliefs: astrology (26 percent), reincarnation (29 percent), psychics (40 percent), and that spiritual energy can be found in physical things (42 percent).
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