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Fathom vs Believe - What's the difference?

fathom | believe |

In transitive terms the difference between fathom and believe

is that fathom is to measure the depth of, take a sounding of while believe is to accept that someone is telling the truth.

As verbs the difference between fathom and believe

is that fathom is to encircle with outstretched arms, especially to take a measurement; to embrace while believe is to accept as true, particularly without absolute certainty (i.e., as opposed to knowing.

As a noun fathom

is grasp, envelopment, control.

fathom

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • (obsolete) Grasp, envelopment, control.
  • (nautical) A measure of length corresponding to the outstretched arms, standardised to six feet, now used mainly for measuring depths in seas or oceans.
  • (by extension) Mental reach or scope; penetration; the extent of capacity; depth of thought or contrivance.
  • * Shakespeare
    • Another of his fathom they have none / To lead their business (Othello, I.i. 151-2).

    Synonyms

    *(measure of length corresponding to the outstretched arms) brace

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (archaic) To encircle with outstretched arms, especially to take a measurement; to embrace.
  • To measure the depth of, take a sounding of.
  • (figuratively) To get to the bottom of; to manage to comprehend (a problem etc.).
    • I can't for the life of me fathom what this means.

    Synonyms

    * fathom out, figure out, puzzle out, work out

    Related terms

    * fathomable * fathometer * fathomless * fathom out * unfathomable

    External links

    * * *

    believe

    English

    Alternative forms

    * beleeve (obsolete)

    Verb

    (believ)
  • (label) To accept as true, particularly without absolute certainty (i.e., as opposed to knowing)
    • (Here, the speaker merely accepts the accuracy of the conditional.)
  • * 1611 , (King James Version of the Bible), 1:1 :
    • Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2014-06-21, volume=411, issue=8892, magazine=(The Economist)
    • , title= Magician’s brain , passage=[Isaac Newton] was obsessed with alchemy. He spent hours copying alchemical recipes and trying to replicate them in his laboratory. He believed that the Bible contained numerological codes.}}
  • (label) To accept that someone is telling the truth.
  • (label) To have religious faith; to believe in a greater truth.

    • Usage notes

    * The transitive verb believe and the phrasal verb (m) are similar but can have very different implications. ** To “believe” someone or something means to accept specific pieces of information as truth: believe the news'', ''believe the lead witness . To “believe a complete stranger” means to accept a stranger's story with little evidence. ** To “believe in” someone or something means to hold confidence and trust in that person or concept: believe in liberty'', ''believe in God . To “believe in one's fellow man” means to place trust and confidence in mankind. * Meanings sometimes overlap. To believe in'' a religious text would also require affirming the truth of at least the major tenets. To ''believe a religious text might likewise imply placing one's confidence and trust in it, in addition to accepting its statements as facts.

    Derived terms

    * believable * believability * believer * believe in * believe it or not * believe one's eyes * believe you me * disbelieve * unbelievable * unbeliever

    Related terms

    * belief * disbelief

    Statistics

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