doubtdoubt2 ●●● S2 verb [transitive not in progressive] 
Kim never doubted his story.doubt (that) I doubt we’ll ever see him again.doubt if/whether You can complain, but I doubt if it’ll make any difference. ‘Do you think there’ll be any tickets left?’ ‘I doubt it (=I don’t think so).’2to not trust or have confidence in someone: I never doubted myself. I always knew I could play tennis at this level. She loved him, and had never doubted him. I have no reason to doubt his word (=think that he is lying).—doubter noun [countable]GRAMMARPatterns with doubt• You doubt whether someone can do something: · I doubt whether we can afford a new car.· She doubted whether she could trust him again.• You doubt whether something will happen: · I doubt whether the plan will work.· He doubted whether this would happen.• You can also say doubt if with the same meaning as doubt whether: · I doubt if we can afford a new car.· I doubt if the plan will work.• You can also say doubt that: · I doubt that we can afford a new car.· I doubt that the plan will work. ✗Don’t say: doubt aboutUsing the progressiveThe verb doubt is not usually used in the progressive. You say: · I doubt he’ll come to the party. ✗Don’t say: I am doubting he’ll come to the party.Grammar guide ‒ VERBSTHESAURUSdoubt to think that something may not be true or that it is unlikely: · ‘Do you think she really is eighteen?’ ‘I doubt it.’· There was so much noise that I doubt if anyone slept.be doubtful/dubious /ˈdjuːbiəs $ ˈduː-/ to doubt that something will happen, is true, or is a good idea: · Economists are doubtful that the situation will improve this year.· ‘You can eat the whole fish including the head.’ Janey looked dubious.· When my husband suggested emigrating, I was dubious at first.· Mum looked doubtful when I suggested having a party for all my friends.have reservations to feel that a plan or idea may not be good because you think there may be some problems with it: · Health care professionals had reservations about giving both vaccines together.have misgivings to feel worried about doing something, because it may have a bad result: · Ralph had serious misgivings about changing his career at the age of 50.have mixed feelings to be unsure exactly how you feel about something or someone because there are both good and bad things about them: · I have very mixed feelings about moving house – it’s exciting but I’ll miss this area.have second thoughts to start having doubts about whether a decision you have just made is the right one: · I liked the dress in the shop, but when I got it home I had second thoughts.
WORD ORIGINdoubt2
Origin:
1200-1300 French douter, from Latin dubitareVERB TABLE
doubt
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | doubt |
| he, she, it | doubts | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | doubted |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have doubted |
| he, she, it | has doubted | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had doubted |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will doubt |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have doubted |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- At the time we seriously doubted that the doctor had got the diagnosis right.
- He doubted that the car was hers because everyone knew she had no money.
- He may be able to do a good job, but I doubt it.
- He wondered how he could ever have doubted her.
- I doubt whether I'll be able to find a decent car for the price I can afford.
- I very much doubt whether we'll get someone for the job by September.
- In all the years I knew him I never once doubted his story.
- It was possible that Maggie had been delayed, but he doubted it.
- She says she'll leave him, but I doubt very much that she will.
- Some people doubted that the attacks on the American ships had actually taken place.
- The Navy never seriously doubted the inquiry's findings.
- They seriously doubted whether the letter had ever existed.
- We'd better go to the party, but I doubt if it'll be very exciting.
- Her sincerity made me doubt my own version of events.
- I doubted that I would find one in time.
- No-one can doubt its power to evoke the imagination of millions upon millions of people through the ages and today.
- Still, I could not doubt that my vision had occurred, even though I had no way to verify it.
- They doubt that Caravaggio was even homosexual, as is widely believed.
- Who could doubt that at this late date?
THESAURUS
to think that something may not be true or that it is unlikely: · ‘Do you think she really is eighteen?’ ‘I doubt it.’· There was so much noise that I doubt if anyone slept.
to doubt that something will happen, is true, or is a good idea: · Economists are doubtful that the situation will improve this year.· ‘You can eat the whole fish including the head.’ Janey looked dubious.· When my husband suggested emigrating, I was dubious at first.· Mum looked doubtful when I suggested having a party for all my friends.
to feel that a plan or idea may not be good because you think there may be some problems with it: · Health care professionals had reservations about giving both vaccines together.
to feel worried about doing something, because it may have a bad result: · Ralph had serious misgivings about changing his career at the age of 50.
to be unsure exactly how you feel about something or someone because there are both good and bad things about them: · I have very mixed feelings about moving house – it’s exciting but I’ll miss this area.
to start having doubts about whether a decision you have just made is the right one: · I liked the dress in the shop, but when I got it home I had second thoughts.
Longman Language Activatornot caring about something: don't think (that) · At first I didn't think that Jim was going to reply.· I don't think many people will come to the meeting, do you?don't think so · "Do we have any coffee left?'' "I don't think so -- I'll have a look.''· "Is Mr Brown there?'' "No, I don't think so, I saw him go out earlier.''
to think that something will probably not happen or is probably not true: doubt if/whether: · We'd better go to the party, but I doubt if it'll be very exciting.· I doubt whether I'll be able to find a decent car for the price I can afford. doubt (that): · Some people doubted that the attacks on the American ships had actually taken place.very much doubt/doubt very much: · I very much doubt whether we'll get someone for the job by September.seriously doubt: · At the time we seriously doubted that the doctor had got the diagnosis right.doubt it: · It was possible that Maggie had been delayed, but he doubted it.
if you are doubtful about something, you do not believe that it will happen or should be done: · Mick felt optimistic about going to work in Hong Kong, but Sue was doubtful.· My brother looked doubtful when I asked him if he'd mind looking after the baby.be doubtful about: · A lot of us felt doubtful about the project at the beginning.be doubtful (that): · The doctor said she was doubtful that antibiotics would work.it is doubtful whether/that/if: · It is doubtful that life could survive under such extreme conditions as these.
if you are dubious about something, you do not think it is a good idea or that it is true: · "Do you think they'll let us in?'' Gabby looked dubious.be dubious about: · Marian is still dubious about whether any of the government's "solutions" will work.
spoken say this when you think something is very unlikely to happen or is very unlikely to be true: · I'd be surprised if they get here in time for the show.· I'd be very surprised if Ronnie got the job -- he just doesn't have enough experience.
spoken say this when you think that something is unlikely to happen or be true, especially when you are not completely sure that you are right: I wouldn't have thought (that): · I wouldn't have thought that there would be much traffic on a Sunday morning.I wouldn't have thought so: · "Will John and Carmen be coming tonight?" "I wouldn't have thought so. They're very busy at the moment."
spoken use this in order to say politely that you think what someone has said is unlikely: · "I think Kate and Eddie will end up getting married." "Really? I'm not sure about that."
when you do not believe something to not believe that something is true or that someone is telling the truth: · She doesn't believe anything he tells her.· I told her it was an accident, but she didn't believe me.not believe (that): · I don't believe you meant half the things you said.not believe a word of it (=not believe it at all): · They say they're going to send me the money, but I don't believe a word of it.
formal to not believe something, especially something that someone has told you: · He had nothing to gain from lying so we saw no reason to disbelieve him.· Kim, of course, disbelieved every word the boy said.
to think that something may not really be true or that someone may not really be telling the truth, even though you are not completely sure: · In all the years I knew him I never once doubted his story.· He wondered how he could ever have doubted her.doubt (that): · He doubted that the car was hers because everyone knew she had no money.doubt whether/if: · They seriously doubted whether the letter had ever existed.I doubt it spoken: · He may be able to do a good job, but I doubt it.doubt very much/seriously doubt (=think something is almost certainly not true): · She says she'll leave him, but I doubt very much that she will.
British /take something with a grain of salt American to not completely believe what someone says to you because you know that they do not always tell the truth: · It's best to take what he says with a pinch of salt - he's always exaggerating.· Every once in a while I go to a psychic, but I take everything she says with a grain of salt.
the feeling that you cannot believe someone or something, especially because it is very surprising: · When people hear tragic news their first reaction is usually one of disbelief.· My story was met with a mixture of disbelief and contempt.do something in disbelief: · I stared at him in utter disbelief.
also skeptical American someone who is sceptical about something is not sure whether it is true, or does not really believe it: · When I started this investigation I was sceptical.· His attitude towards all religion is sceptical.sceptical about: · I wish him luck, but I'm skeptical about his chances of success.
someone who is cynical is not willing to believe that people have good or honest reasons for doing something: · I think movie stars just do charity work to get publicity - but maybe I'm too cynical.· an author with a cynical view of lifecynical about: · Since her divorce, she's become very cynical about men.
unable to believe something because it is so surprising that it seems impossible: · Everyone looked incredulous when I said I used to drive a taxi.· "A millionaire!" she was incredulous. "Like hell he is!"· The announcement was met by incredulous laughter.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY I doubt we’ll ever see him again. You can complain, but I doubt if it’ll make any difference. ‘Do you think there’ll be any tickets left?’ ‘I doubt it (=I don’t think so).’ I have no reason to doubt his word (=think that he is lying).COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES Cast aside your fears. This just confirms my worst fears. Their faces were suddenly filled with fear. I have grave doubts about his ability. Any lingering hopes of winning the title soon disappeared. There was still a nagging doubt in the back of her mind. The way the research was carried out raises doubts about the results. The evidence was clear, and there was little room for doubt. There’s not a shred of doubt (=no doubt at all) in my mind that we will win. an attempt to sow doubt among the jury members Local people are questioning the wisdom of spending so much money on a new road.COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB
I doubt we’ll ever see him again. You can complain, but I doubt if it’ll make any difference. ‘Do you think there’ll be any tickets left?’ ‘I doubt it (=I don’t think so).’ I have no reason to doubt his word (=think that he is lying). Cast aside your fears. This just confirms my worst fears. (=not believe that something exists)· Some people doubt the existence of life at the very bottom of the ocean.
(=say or show that you are not sure whether something is true or right)· Environmentalists began to express doubts about the benefits of biofuels.
Their faces were suddenly filled with fear. I have grave doubts about his ability. Any lingering hopes of winning the title soon disappeared. There was still a nagging doubt in the back of her mind. The way the research was carried out raises doubts about the results. The evidence was clear, and there was little room for doubt. There’s not a shred of doubt (=no doubt at all) in my mind that we will win. an attempt to sow doubt among the jury members Local people are questioning the wisdom of spending so much money on a new road.· Her family had never doubted she was heading for the top job.· He never doubted that he knew all.· I think you need never doubt that he loves you.· Some of the tales were the apocrypha of his enemies, others Mitchell never doubted to be true.· I never doubted that I was on a road that led somewhere.· We never doubted that the way we did things would catch on.· The Khatami camp never doubted that their man would win a second presidential term.· Walt Disney never doubted for a moment that he could make Snow white.
· Nobody seriously doubts that butter is lovely stuff.· Montagu testified that they never seriously doubted Lloyd George's ability to form a Government.· I doubt if anyone would seriously doubt that, now, as a matter of fact, this is the case.· Questions about why these examples and not others constantly loom, because we can seriously doubt how representative the selected texts are.
NOUN· None doubted his ability, but Hardaker frowned upon his frankness.· Some doubted its ability to withstand rough weather.· She doubted her own ability to survive that long.· Montagu testified that they never seriously doubted Lloyd George's ability to form a Government.· She would have liked to be nearer to the panel, but she doubted her ability to kneel or squat in the spacesuit.· I doubt my ability for it.· But still she doubted her ability to hold out against him.
· But do we doubt the existence of thought?· In 4.2 I gave reasons for doubting the existence or if not the existence the usefulness of infallible beliefs.· You don't doubt the existence of chairs and tables, or the paper on which these words are written.
· Was there any reason to doubt that 1972 would be just as successful?· There is little reason to doubt O'Neill's honesty: clearly she had a very unusual experience.· There are many reasons to doubt that.· There is little reason to doubt the efficiency of this engine of justice.· While there were clearly political motives involved, there seems no reason to doubt his sincerity.· We know this from Soviet accounts, but there is little reason to doubt them.· Those who proclaimed it may have done so for cynical reasons, but I doubt that they genuinely believed it.
· Not for one moment did he doubt the validity of those ideas.· Such evidence casts doubt on the validity of the income / leisure trade-off model.· Later we shall have cause to doubt its accuracy and validity.· If our beliefs have never been challenged or put to the test we may doubt their validity now.
· It was as if the mere presence of the prize made each man doubt his own wisdom.
· Once you doubt my word, that's it.· I expect you will not doubt my word too?· It never occurred to her to doubt the warrior's word.· She doubted the words would even be able to leave her mouth.
VERB· By the autumn of 1959, the Chiefs of Staff had begun to doubt its viability as an effective deterrent.· I was teaching economics and watching people die on the streets when I began doubting what I had learned from the textbooks.· I began to doubt my own soundness of mind.· He had even begun to doubt himself!· Otherwise we begin to doubt the concept.· Some people began to doubt Frank.
· The Newsweek story also casts doubt on the official version of what happened to Whitewater itself.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
- She claimed she wasn't trying to commit suicide, and doctors gave her the benefit of the doubt.
- Something didn't seem quite right, but I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.
- A foot abscess had cast doubts on the colt's participation in the Epsom Classic on Wednesday week.
- Both studies cast doubt on individuals' awareness of tax changes and therefore suggest a low labour response.
- But this very silence casts doubt on Mancini's central point that the council actually voted down the king's expressed wishes.
- Journalists and diplomatic sources, however, cast doubt on the government's version.
- Some are oversensitive, which leads to annoyance and casts doubt on readings which might not be inaccurate.
- That, the authors conclude, casts doubt on the refuge hypothesis.
- This casts doubt on the suggestion that Asclepiodatus was also responsible for the shorter prologue of Lex Salica.
- To cast doubt on the importance of production is thus to bring into questIon the foundation of the entire edifice.
- I like the element of risk.
- If Weaver had been watching as Liz Spalding had been smuggled into the house, then the element of surprise was lost.
- It contains a major element of truth, even if it is not precisely the truth which its originators intended.
- The element of risk gave it an added excitement.
- There is an element of truth in all of these.
- There were elements of truth in this critique, Jim supposed.
- Web browsers, once limited to displaying text and graphics and downloading files, have created an entirely new element of risk.
- What I do is count on the element of surprise.
- Almost immediately, the fretting, niggling worries and the sense of fearful anticipation began to return.
- Always, in the background, in the dim recesses of her mind, there had been that niggling doubt.
- And here a niggling doubt enters the mind.
- Nor did it remove the niggling suspicion that Isabel was hiding something.
- Of course, this is usually so, but I am having little niggling doubts about such a sweeping statement.
- There remains the niggling doubt that this delay has something to do with our muddled sentimentality towards animals.
- There was, however, a niggling doubt in the minds of some of the jurors.
- The authenticity of the relics is open to doubt.
- Their motives are open to question.
- But whether Republicans want to cooperate is open to question.
- Even if, as is open to question, screen violence really does invite emulation, that is the wrong approach.
- In particular, the significance of the small number who say their work has been deskilled is open to question.
- It also is open to question how well equipped courts are to make this kind of determination-about the workings of economic markets.
- The entire business of basing regulations on animal tests is open to question.
- The President acceded to the Chancellor's request for two reasons, both of which were open to question.
- Whether the yeast could ever be as abundant as this is open to question.
- Whether this kind of Labour Party is capable of winning a general election is open to doubt.
- Their conversation had planted doubts in Dennis' mind about the partnership.
- Civilised society generally only convicts where a man is guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
- Finally, although it is not proved beyond reasonable doubt, most experts agree that dry foods are beneficial to the teeth.
- If theft is not proved beyond reasonable doubt, they should consider handling.
- If we knew that, I think we'd be beyond reasonable doubt.
- In many cases, it will be hard for the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt that he is lying.
- It means only that prosecutors failed to prove their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, he said.
- Once the issue is validly raised, the prosecution has the burden of disproving it beyond reasonable doubt.
- They had to feel, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Bill had killed Sandy.
- Don't ask me how - but I knew it without a shadow of a doubt.
- Now she knew without a shadow of doubt that she wasn't.
- But whether the parent with the yellow flowers supplies the egg or the pollen makes not the slightest difference.
- I tried closing my eyes; it made not the slightest difference.
- There was now not the slightest doubt that Hsu was decaying and losing her structural integrity.
- In the sickroom or with Diniz, Nicholas never threw doubt on the arrival of Katelina's dream fleet.
- The market people passed comments on his wife and, he said, threw doubt on his ability to better her.
- Wallis further throws doubt on Gusfield's claim that he had in fact identified a status group.
- What they have to say throws doubt on previous inferences about how labour-intensive Maya agricultural techniques were, at least at San Antonio.
WORD FAMILYadjectivedoubtfuldoubtlessindubitableundoubtedadverbdoubtfullyindubitablyundoubtedlynoundoubtdoubterverbdoubt
1to think that something may not be true or that it is unlikely: Kim never doubted his story.doubt (that) I doubt we’ll ever see him again.doubt if/whether You can complain, but I doubt if it’ll make any difference. ‘Do you think there’ll be any tickets left?’ ‘I doubt it (=I don’t think so).’2to not trust or have confidence in someone: I never doubted myself. I always knew I could play tennis at this level. She loved him, and had never doubted him. I have no reason to doubt his word (=think that he is lying).—doubter noun [countable]GRAMMARPatterns with doubt• You doubt whether someone can do something: · I doubt whether we can afford a new car.· She doubted whether she could trust him again.• You doubt whether something will happen: · I doubt whether the plan will work.· He doubted whether this would happen.• You can also say doubt if with the same meaning as doubt whether: · I doubt if we can afford a new car.· I doubt if the plan will work.• You can also say doubt that: · I doubt that we can afford a new car.· I doubt that the plan will work. ✗Don’t say: doubt aboutUsing the progressiveThe verb doubt is not usually used in the progressive. You say: · I doubt he’ll come to the party. ✗Don’t say: I am doubting he’ll come to the party.Grammar guide ‒ VERBSTHESAURUSdoubt to think that something may not be true or that it is unlikely: · ‘Do you think she really is eighteen?’ ‘I doubt it.’· There was so much noise that I doubt if anyone slept.be doubtful/dubious /ˈdjuːbiəs $ ˈduː-/ to doubt that something will happen, is true, or is a good idea: · Economists are doubtful that the situation will improve this year.· ‘You can eat the whole fish including the head.’ Janey looked dubious.· When my husband suggested emigrating, I was dubious at first.· Mum looked doubtful when I suggested having a party for all my friends.have reservations to feel that a plan or idea may not be good because you think there may be some problems with it: · Health care professionals had reservations about giving both vaccines together.have misgivings to feel worried about doing something, because it may have a bad result: · Ralph had serious misgivings about changing his career at the age of 50.have mixed feelings to be unsure exactly how you feel about something or someone because there are both good and bad things about them: · I have very mixed feelings about moving house – it’s exciting but I’ll miss this area.have second thoughts to start having doubts about whether a decision you have just made is the right one: · I liked the dress in the shop, but when I got it home I had second thoughts.