What does "faith" mean?
A trust or confidence in the intentions or abilities of a person, object, or ideal from prior empirical evidence.
Faith
/feɪθ/ adv, intj, name, noun
adv, intj, name, noun ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A trust or confidence in the intentions or abilities of a person, object, or ideal from prior empirical evidence.
- Grammar: faith is listed as adv, intj, name, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: religion, trust, abandon, acceptation.
- Useful contrasts: atheism, betrayal, bury your hopes.
- Usage evidence: The recent scandals involving altar boys and religious leaders have undermined the faith people have in the Church.
How to use "faith"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "faith" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "faith" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "faith" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "faith" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "faith" is acting as adv, intj, name, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "religion" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "faith", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A trust or confidence in the intentions or abilities of a person, object, or ideal from prior empirical evidence. countable, uncountable
"The faithfulness of Old Faithful gives us faith in it."
- 2 loyalty or allegiance to a cause or a person wordnet
- 3 A conviction about abstractions, ideas, or beliefs, without empirical evidence, experience, or observation. countable, uncountable
"I have faith that my prayers will be answered."
- 4 complete confidence in a person or plan etc wordnet
- 5 A religious or spiritual belief system. countable, metonymically, uncountable
"The Christian faith."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 a strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny wordnet
- 7 An obligation of loyalty or fidelity and the observance of such an obligation. countable, uncountable
"He acted in good faith to restore broken diplomatic ties after defeating the incumbent."
- 8 an institution to express belief in a divine power wordnet
- 9 Credibility or truth. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"1784-1810, William Mitford, History of Greece the faith of the foregoing […] narrative"
Adverb
- 1 Alternative form of in faith (“really, truly”). alt-of, alternative, archaic, not-comparable
"“How wonderfully,” said Vincent, “your city dignities unloose the tongue: directly a man has been a mayor, he thinks himself qualified for a Tully at least. Faith, Venables asked me one day, what was the Latin for spouting? and I told him, ‘hippomanes, or a raging humour in mayors.’”"
Intj
- 1 Ellipsis of by my faith. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis, obsolete
Proper Noun
- 1 A female given name from English. countable, uncountable
""Now, I was called Faith after the cardinal virtue; and I like my name, though many people would think it too Puritan; that was according to our gentle mother's pious desire."
- 2 A surname, also used as a stage name. countable, uncountable
- 3 A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Norman County, Minnesota. countable, uncountable
- 4 A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Miller County, Missouri. countable, uncountable
- 5 A place in the United States:; A town in Rowan County, North Carolina. countable, uncountable
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A place in the United States:; A minor city in Meade County, South Dakota. countable, uncountable
Example
"The recent scandals involving altar boys and religious leaders have undermined the faith people have in the Church."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "faith"?
Common synonyms include: religion, trust, abandon, acceptation, acception, acquiescence.
How do you use "faith" in a sentence?
The recent scandals involving altar boys and religious leaders have undermined the faith people have in the Church.
How do you pronounce "faith"?
Pronounced /feɪθ/.
Etymology
From Middle English faith (also fay), borrowed from Old French fei, feid, from Latin fidem. Displaced native Old English ġelēafa, which was also a word for belief. * Old French had [θ] as a final devoiced allophone of /ð/ from lenited Latin /d/; this eventually fell silent in the 12th century. The -th of the Middle English forms is most straightforwardly accounted for as a direct borrowing of a French [θ]. However, it has also been seen as arising from alteration of a French form with -d under influence of English abstract nouns in the suffix -th (e.g., truth, ruth, health, etc.), or as a recharacterization of a French form like fay, fey, fei with the same suffix. Compare Champenois fiate, fiaite, showing the same preservation of the final consonant.