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Synonyms

conviction

American  
[kuhn-vik-shuhn] / kənˈvɪk ʃən /

noun

  1. a fixed or firm belief.

    No clever argument, no persuasive fact or theory could make a dent in his conviction in the rightness of his position.

  2. the act of convicting someone, as in a court of law; a declaration that a person is guilty of an offense.

  3. the state of being convicted.

  4. the act of convincing a person by argument or evidence.

  5. the state of being convinced.

    Antonyms:
    uncertainty, doubt

conviction British  
/ kənˈvɪkʃən /

noun

  1. the state or appearance of being convinced

  2. a fixed or firmly held belief, opinion, etc

  3. the act of convincing

  4. the act or an instance of convicting or the state of being convicted

  5. to be convincing

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

conviction Idioms  
  1. see courage of one's convictions.


Related Words

See belief.

Other Word Forms

  • convictional adjective
  • nonconviction noun
  • preconviction noun
  • proconviction adjective
  • reconviction noun

Etymology

Origin of conviction

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Late Latin convictiōn-, stem of convictiō “proof (of guilt)” from convict(us) “convinced, conquered” (past participle of convincere; convince ) + -iō -ion ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He doesn’t relate to the historicist’s patient conviction that an Iranian Thermidor lies ahead.

From The Wall Street Journal

The volunteers faced charges, including “abandonment of property” and felony harboring, though the convictions for some were later overturned.

From Los Angeles Times

Like others in the exhibition, she shared the convictions that the source of art was the unconscious and that the artist’s role was to reveal the unseen, not to depict the known.

From The Wall Street Journal

Mountbatten-Windsor had to publicly distance himself from Epstein, following the latter's conviction in 2008, but Stern acts as a go-between, forwarding documents and intelligence from Andrew.

From BBC

By my 30s, I was comfortably situated in yet another trusted cohort, supporting my activist friends on things we all cared about: reproductive rights, wrongful convictions, freedom for Palestine.

From The Wall Street Journal