Page 139 - English Vocabulary In Use upper intermediet and advance

Belief and opinion

Verbs connected with beliefs and opinions

You probably already know think and believe; here are more.
I'm convinced we've met before. [very strong feeling that you're right]
I've always held that compulsory education is a waste of time. [used for very firm
beliefs; maintain could be used here]
She maintains that we're related, but I'm not convinced. [insist on believing, often
against the evidence; hold could not be used here]
I feel she shouldn't be forced to do the job. [strong personal opinion]
I reckon they'll get married soon. [informal, usually an opinion about what is likely to
happen I to be true]
I doubt we'll ever see total world peace. [don't believe]
I suspect a lot of people never even think about pollution when they're driving their own
car. [have a strong feeling about something negative]

Phrases for expressing opinion
In my view / in my opinion, we haven't made any progress.
She's made a big mistake, to my mind. [fairly informal]
If you ask me, he ought to change his job. [informal]
Note how point of view, is used in English:
From a teacher's point of view, the new examinations are a disaster; [how teachers see
things, or are affected]

Prepositions used with belief and opinion words

Do you believe in God? What are your views on divorce?
What do you think of the new boss? I'm in favour of long prison sentences.
Are you for or against long prison sentences? I have my doubts about this plan.
Beliefs, ideologies, philosophies, convictions

If you would rather organise this word tree differently or can add more examples, do so; it
will probably help you to remember the words better

socialist conservative Darwinist vegetarian Muslim pacifist

Some adjectives for describing people's beliefs and views, in pairs of similar, but not the
same, meaning.
fanaticallobsessive eccentriclodd conservativeltraditional
middle-of-the-roadlmoderate dedicatedlcommitted firmlstrong

134 English Vocabulary in Use