1.belief的基本意思是“相信；信任”,指对某事物或人的真实性和正确性所具有的信心，无论根据是否充足或是否必然，均认为是真实可信的，这种看法可以是自己头脑中产生的，也可以是别人灌输的。
2.belief后面接介词about表示“关于…的看法，意见”；后面接由that引导的同位语从句或介词in表示“对…的信仰”；后面接介词upon表示“相信”。

beyond belief
难以置信的; 不可思议的 too great, difficult, dreadful to be believed; incredible
The huts they lived in were sordid and filthy beyond belief.他们住的小房真是异乎寻常地脏。
Dissatisfaction with the government has grown beyond belief. 对政府的不满已经达到令人难以置信的程度。
His story is beyond belief. 他说的事令人难以置信。
Some of the reports about him are beyond belief. 有关他的一些传闻真叫人难以相信。

to the best of one's belief
据某人所知；在某人看来
To the best of my belief she is still living there. 据我所知，她还住在那儿。
To the best of my belief I have never seen him before. 我相信自己过去从未见过他。

in the belief that...
相信… feeling confident that...
〔说明〕 本结构中that从句的谓语动词常用虚拟式；有时在belief前加形容词mistaken，表示“误以为”。
He came to me in the belief that I could help him.他到我这里来， 因为相信我能帮助他。
He called at he house in the belief that she would lend him the money. 他相信她会借钱给他，所以上她家拜访。
He did it in the belief that he was right. 他这么干是因为他坚信自己是对的。
She acted in the belief that she was doing good. 她这么做是因为她认定自己是在做好事。
She started taking money from her employer, in the mistaken belief that she would not be discovered. 她误以为自己不会被发觉，开始偷起雇主的钱来。

His religious beliefs don't allow him to eat meat. 他的宗教信仰不允许他吃肉。
Where did the word come from? There are all sorts of beliefs. 这个词到底是从哪儿来的呢？众说纷纭。
All non-violent religious and political beliefs should be respected equally. 对所有非暴力的宗教和政治信仰应予以同等尊重。
Could you defend your political beliefs? 你能捍卫你的政治信念吗？
He was jailed for his religious beliefs. 他因宗教信仰而入狱。
Contrary to popular belief, he was not responsible for the tragedy. 与大家的看法相反，他对这出悲剧没有责任。
He acted in accordance with his beliefs. 他按照自己的信念行事。
She is a woman with strong religious beliefs. 她是一个有强烈宗教信仰的妇女。
▲～+prep.-phrase
They abandoned their beliefs about this religion.他们放弃了对这种宗教的种种看法。
Her belief in God remained strong. 她对上帝的信仰坚强如初。
His belief in God gave him hope during difficult times. 他对上帝的信仰使他在困境中看到希望。
I have complete belief in my friends. 对朋友我是完全信任的。
The failure of the operation has shaken my belief in the doctor. 手术的失败动摇了我对医生的信心。
There's nothing more natural than a childish belief in his parents.没有任何事情比一个孩子对父母的信赖更自然。
They cherish a belief in ghosts. 他们相信鬼魂的存在。
I have't much belief in his honesty.我不太相信他的诚实。
It robbed her of her profound belief in religion.这使她不再对宗教深信不疑。
I admire his passionate belief in what he is doing. 我佩服他对自己的工作所抱的坚定的信念。
This theory goes against the beliefs of most current political thinkers. 这个理论与当今大多数政治思想家的看法相违背。
Most children follow the belief of their parents. 大多数孩子追随父母的信仰。
Due to his belief upon the false testimony he made a mistake.由于相信假证词，他犯了个错误。
▲～+that-clause
I hold a firm belief that he will win.我坚信他会成功。
It is my belief that nuclear weapons are immoral. 我相信使核武器是不道德的。
It's my belief that her death was not an accident. 我相信她的死亡并非意外事故所致。
He deceived us into the belief that he was an honest man.他骗得我们相信他是诚实的人。
There is a general belief that thing will soon get better. 大家普遍认为情况很快就会好转。
There is widespread belief that an agreement has been made. 大家普遍认为已经签订了协议。

belief, confidence, faith, trust
参见faith条。

［同义词］   faith, trust
［反义词］   doubt, suspicion