(~s)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
Belief is a feeling of certainty that something exists, is true, or is good.
One billion people throughout the world are Muslims, united by ~ in one god.
...a ~ in personal liberty.
N-UNCOUNT: usu N in n
2.
Your religious or political ~s are your views on religious or political matters.
He refuses to compete on Sundays because of his religious ~s.
N-PLURAL: usu supp N
3.
If it is your ~ that something is the case, it is your strong opinion that it is the case.
It is our ~ that improvements in health care will lead to a stronger, more prosperous economy.
N-SING: usu N that
4.
You use beyond ~ to emphasize that something is true to a very great degree or that it happened to a very great degree.
We are devastated, shocked beyond ~...
PHRASE: adj PHR, PHR after v emphasis
5.
You use contrary to popular ~ to introduce a statement that is the opposite to what is thought to be true by most ordinary people.
Contrary to popular ~, there is no evidence that what you look like makes much difference to your life.
PHRASE: PHR with cl
6.
If you do one thing in the ~ that another thing is true or will happen, you do it because you think, usually wrongly, that it is true or will happen.
Civilians had broken into the building, apparently in the ~ that it contained food.
PHRASE: PHR after v, PHR cl