Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Lack of belief or faith, especially in religious matters.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun Incredulity; the withholding of belief; disbelief; especially, disbelief of divine revelation.
  • noun Disbelief of the truth of the gospel; distrust of God's promises and faithfulness, etc. Mat. xiii. 58; Mark vi. 6; Heb. iii. 12.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The withholding of belief; doubt; incredulity; skepticism.
  • noun Disbelief; especially, disbelief of divine revelation, or in a divine providence or scheme of redemption.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An absence (or rejection) of belief, especially religious belief

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a rejection of belief

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From un- +‎ belief.

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Examples

  • There are times when the word unbelief is used to describe the doubts of those who are definitely believers but only when they are at a stage of doubting which is rationally inexcusable and well on the way to becoming full-grown unbelief e.g.

    If I Really Believe, Why Do I Have These Doubts? Dr. Lynn Anderson 2000

  • Applying this general rule to the particular case that Paul has before him, the reason why the unworthy, undeserving, ill-deserving Gentiles are called, and grafted into the church, while the greatest part of the Jews are left to perish in unbelief, is not because those Gentiles were better deserving or better disposed for such a favour, but because of God's free grace that made that difference.

    Commentary on the Whole Bible Volume VI (Acts to Revelation) 1721

  • This may be logical, but it is not the truth: it seems to me that it is really distrust, incurable doubt of the future, a sense of the justice but not of the goodness of God -- in short, unbelief, which is my misfortune and my sin.

    Amiel's Journal Henri Fr��d��ric Amiel 1885

  • Based on a series of lectures he gave to large audiences at Tübingen in 1967, the book is evidence that he is no stranger to unbelief — that despite his strict Catholic upbringing and constant faith he knows unbelief from the inside.

    The Year of two Popes 2006

  • Perhaps unbelief is genetic, like homosexual orientation.

    Atheist's holiday David 2006

  • Based on a series of lectures he gave to large audiences at Tübingen in 1967, the book is evidence that he is no stranger to unbelief — that despite his strict Catholic upbringing and constant faith he knows unbelief from the inside.

    The Year of two Popes 2006

  • Perhaps unbelief is genetic, like homosexual orientation.

    Archive 2006-12-01 David 2006

  • Our forefathers would have laughed in unbelief and derision at such excuses.

    The Powerful Equation of Love 2005

  • His unbelief is of a piece with his attempt to deaden his emotions and decrease his vulnerability.

    Mind the Gap 2004

  • His unbelief is of a piece with his attempt to deaden his emotions and decrease his vulnerability.

    Mind the Gap 2004

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