I. ˈfāth noun
( plural faiths -āths also -āthz)
Etymology: Middle English feith, fey, from Old French feid ( d probably pronounced th), fei, foi, from Latin fides; akin to Latin fidere to trust — more at bide
1.
a. : the act or state of wholeheartedly and steadfastly believing in the existence, power, and benevolence of a supreme being, of having confidence in his providential care, and of being loyal to his will as revealed or believed in : belief and trust in and loyalty to God
people earnestly prayed in the ages of faith … to be delivered from sudden death — J.A.Pike
lost his faith at an early age
b.
(1) : an act or attitude of intellectual assent to the traditional doctrines of one's religion : orthodox religious belief
(2) : a decision of an individual entrusting his life to God's transforming care in response to an experience of God's mercy
c. among Roman Catholic theologians : a supernatural virtue by which one believes on the authority of God himself all that God has revealed or proposes through the Church for belief
2.
a.
(1) : firm or unquestioning belief in something for which there is no proof
for the scientist faith can be no virtue, because it is inconsistent with the resolution to accept the fact as supreme — P.W.Bridgman
clinging to the faith that her missing son would one day return
(2) : uncritical grounds for belief — used chiefly in the phrase on faith
you will have to accept my statements on faith
b. : confidence ; especially : firm or unquestioning trust or confidence in the value, power, or efficacy of something
have faith in prayer
faith in his medical skill
the faith on which science rests, the faith in the value of truth seeking — H.T.Muller
3.
a. : an assurance, promise, or pledge of fidelity, loyalty, or performance
gave his faith that he would come on the appointed day
— often used in the phrases to keep faith or to break faith
to have hitchhiked would have been breaking faith , for all who use the country's youth hostels are honor bound to reach them under their own power — H.V.Morton
b. : fidelity to one's promises : allegiance to a duty or a person : sincerity or honesty of intentions : loyalty — often used with the qualifiers good or bad to specify a state of mind of one trying to be honest and faithful
observed perfect good faith and strictly fulfilled their engagements — Marjory S. Douglas
or of one trying to deceive, mislead, or defraud
accused him of bad faith
4. obsolete : authority , credit , credibility
5. : something that is believed or adhered to especially with strong conviction: as
a.
(1) : a system of religious beliefs : religion
an individual of the Jewish faith
(2) : the body of believers : an organized church or denomination
a movement supported by all the great faiths
b. : the cherished values, ideals, or beliefs of an individual or people : weltanschauung , creed , credo
a free world which is strong in its faith and in its material progress — Dean Acheson
c. : the fundamental tenets, views, or beliefs of an individual or group on a particular subject or in a particular field
a profession of literary faith
I state my own faith at once … organic union under the Crown is vital — R.G.Menzies
she visits the prisoners of her own political faith — Katharine A. Porter
6. often capitalized : the true religion from the point of view of the speaker — usually used with the
the king, temporal head of the faith
Synonyms: see belief , religion , trust
•
- in faith
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English feithen, from feith, n.
archaic : believe , trust