faith

¹

[ feyth ]

noun

1. confidence or trust in a person or thing:

   faith in another's ability.

2. belief that is not based on proof:

   He had faith that the hypothesis would be substantiated by fact.

3. belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion:

   the firm faith of the Pilgrims.

4. belief in anything, as a code of ethics, standards of merit, etc.:

   to be of the same faith with someone concerning honesty.

5. a system of religious belief:

   the Christian faith;

   the Jewish faith.

6. the obligation of loyalty or fidelity to a person, promise, engagement, etc.:

   Failure to appear would be breaking faith.

7. the observance of this obligation; fidelity to one's promise, oath, allegiance, etc.:

   He was the only one who proved his faith during our recent troubles.

8. Christian Theology. the trust in God and in His promises as made through Christ and the Scriptures by which humans are justified or saved.

Faith

²

[ feyth ]

noun

1. a female given name.

faith

/ feɪθ /

noun

1. strong or unshakeable belief in something, esp without proof or evidence
2. a specific system of religious beliefs

   the Jewish faith

3. Christianity trust in God and in his actions and promises
4. a conviction of the truth of certain doctrines of religion, esp when this is not based on reason
5. complete confidence or trust in a person, remedy, etc
6. any set of firmly held principles or beliefs
7. allegiance or loyalty, as to a person or cause (esp in the phrases keep faith , break faith )
8. bad faith
   insincerity or dishonesty
9. good faith
   honesty or sincerity, as of intention in business (esp in the phrase in good faith )

interjection

1. archaic.
   indeed; really (also in the phrases by my faith , in faith )

Other Words From

• multi·faith adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of faith¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English feith, from Anglo-French fed, Old French feid, feit, from Latin fidem, accusative of fidēs “trust,” derivative of fīdere “to trust”; confide

Word History and Origins

Origin of faith¹

C12: from Anglo-French feid , from Latin fidēs trust, confidence

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in faith, in truth; indeed:

   In faith, he is a fine lad.

More idioms and phrases containing faith

see act of faith ; in bad (good) faith ; leap of faith ; on faith ; pin one's hopes (faith) on .

Example Sentences

A flamboyant clergyman with a flair for vaping, Tedesco promises to cease “the sacrilege of relativism, placing all faiths as equal.”

From Salon

All of these goals should be articles of faith in a democratic society.

From Los Angeles Times

"We've been through all of it, but one thing with Haitians is that we have proven over and over that we are people of strength, resilience and unwavering faith."

From Salon

Trump's plans for the department include ending "weaponised government", protecting US borders, dismantling criminal organisations and restoring Americans' "badly-shattered faith and confidence" in the department.

From BBC

Her faith was really shaken, however, when her big sister Celene died suddenly, aged 22, in the early months of 2020.

From BBC

Related Words

• church
• conviction
• denomination
• doctrine
• principle
• religion
• sect
• teaching