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believably

believably

2 3.2
In a way that seems real or true
  • adverb
  • /bɪˈliːvəbli/
translation icon : creíblemente
  • The actor performed the role believably, making the character's emotions feel real.
  • so believably

He's really, he's acting believably rather than worrying about what's the where's the joke here?

Examples

  • So the other part is to design the challenges with a lot of random variation built in, enough to make each run believably different from the last.

    Blog text (25)
  • And they do very enthusiastically and very believably make stuff up.

  • A whole lot happened, quickly but also believably.

    Blog text (4)
  • Her character was competent and believably tough, and her scenes were fun.

    Blog text (3)
  • The Cambodian actors physically perform their roles believably enough, but their voices are anything but.

    Blog text (16)
  • The bottom line is he's simply too young to believably convey the emotion behind any song I'd ever want to hear.

    Blog text (27)
  • The narrator, in forging so believably the discourse of a historical work, creates one of his own.

    Academic text (1993)
  • For the city to believably claim that BRT is 1/3 less than light rail, the BRT cost would have to be limited to just the busway.

    Blog text (6)
  • Director Wendy Dann, assistant professor of theater arts, provides superb casting and beautiful staging that is simple yet still manages to perfectly and believably convey the plot to the audience.

    Blog text (20)
  • Stiefel and other creators of semiprofessional sleuths have given their heroes unusual jobs, but they're the kinds of jobs that might believably bring trouble to the heroes' doorsteps again and again.

    Academic text (2008)

Synonyms

convincingly
vsbelievably
26 3.8

In a way that makes people believe what you say

relies on giving a natural impression rather than active persuasion
credibly
vsbelievably
11 4.4

In a believable way that makes people think it is true

is a general impression of being true without stressing supporting evidence
plausibly
vsbelievably
9 6.3

In a way that seems likely from the facts

gives a general impression of being true rather than stressing evidence-based likelihood

Antonyms

107 3.7

In a way that is very surprising or seems impossible

1 7.5

In a way that is hard to believe

How Believable

undeniably
29 4.4
convincingly
26 3.8
credibly
11 4.4
believably
2 3.2
plausibly
9 6.3
possibly
1.0
implausibly
1 7.5

Surface Forms

believably positive

Morphology

believably = believable (transparent) = believe + able + ly

Formed by adding the adverbial suffix '-ly' to the adjective 'believable', which itself is a regular derivation from 'believe' + '-able'.

Etymology

Believably comes from believe + -able + -ly, where believe means 'to accept as true' and -able means 'can'. So, believably means 'in a way that can be believed' or 'in a way that seems true'.