What does disbelief mean?
Word: Disbelief
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Disbelief means the feeling that something cannot be true or real, so you cannot accept it.
Synonyms: amazement, distrust
Antonyms: faith
How do you spell disbelief?
Syllables: dis - be - lief
Tricky part: There is only one s, since dis meets a b. Say the be clearly so its e does not turn into an i.
Watch out for: disbilief, disbelife, dissbelief
Memory tip: Only one s: picture it jumping from the end of dis straight onto the b, with no room for a twin.
Disbelief in a sentence
Example 1: Grandma shook her head in disbelief when she saw the bill.
Example 2: The crowd stared in disbelief as the last wicket fell.
Example 3: I read the score twice in disbelief.
Fun Fact
The poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote in 1817 about the willing suspension of disbelief, the way readers accept magic in a story.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word:
disbelief
a) doubt
b) trust
c) shock
d) surprise
Show answer
b) trust. Trust is the opposite: you are sure something is true.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
lefbiseid
a) dislikes
b) disbelief
c) disciples
d) disabled
Show answer
b) disbelief. Only one word here uses an f, so it must be disbelief.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the correctly spelt word:
a) astonishmant
b) wonderfull
c) confussion
d) disbelief
Show answer
d) disbelief. Only disbelief is right: astonishment ends in ment, wonderful has one l and confusion one s.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
Grandpa watched the magic trick in disbeleif and asked to see it again.
a) again
b) magic
c) disbeleif
d) Grandpa
Show answer
c) disbeleif. After the l comes i and then e, the same order as in field.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these might you say in disbelief?
a) 'See you tomorrow.'
b) 'That cannot be true.'
c) 'I am very hungry.'
d) 'Thank you so much.'
Show answer
b) 'That cannot be true.'
2. Which news would people greet with disbelief?
a) the shop is open today
b) a cow has learnt to read
c) school starts at eight
d) it rained last night
Show answer
b) a cow has learnt to read
