Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

believer

/bɪˈlivɚ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.67 in modern English

Syllables: be-liev-er
IPA: /bɪˈlivɚ/

13

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

3

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A person who believes; especially regarding religion.

Example Sentences

"She's a believer in life after death."
"But the other two were, comparatively speaking, clean shaved, which of course gave the enemy a larger extent of open country to operate on, though in Mahomed's case the mosquitoes, recognising the taste of a true believer, would not touch him at any price."
"A long list of thinkers, both believers and nonbelievers, have posited something like an innate religious instinct."

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁ep-der. Proto-Indo-European *h₁épsder. Proto-Indo-European *h₁épider. Proto-Indo-European *h₁pi Proto-Germanic *bider. Proto-Germanic *bi- Proto-West Germanic *bi- Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *laubō Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Germanic *-janą Proto-Germanic *laubijaną Proto-West Germanic *laubijan Proto-West Germanic *bilaubijan Old English belīefan Middle English bileven English believe Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusnom. Latin -āriusbor. Proto-Germanic *-ārijaz Proto-West Germanic *-ārī Old English -ere Middle English -ere English -er English believer From Middle English bilevar, bileever, belever, equivalent to believe + -er.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: bilevar
Suffix: believe

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /bɪˈlivɚ/
British English: /bɪˈliːvə/

Inflected Forms

believers (plural)

Derived Forms

Belieber believerdom believerhood cobeliever disbeliever prebeliever wanbeliever

Phrases

co-believer crypto-believer priesthood of all believers true believer true believer syndrome true-believer syndrome

Frequently Paired Words

antireligious religism agnostic

Synonyms

believer devotee devotionalist pietist religioner religionist religitard solifidian

Antonyms

infidel non-believer nonbeliever unbeliever antitheist atheist apostate disbeliever heretic irreligionist nastika nullifidian

Rhymes With

fever receiver beaver weaver reliever cleaver retriever achiever leaver cheever seaver mckeever

Questions

How do you pronounce believer?: The recorded pronunciation is /bɪˈlivɚ/.
What does believer mean?: A person who believes; especially regarding religion.
Where does believer come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce believer

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “believer”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/bɪˈlivɚ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “believer”.
Repeat and practice — Say “believer” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.