How to Spell Believe

It's "believe" with IE, not "beleive" with EI. The correct English spelling is always "believe" (B-E-L-I-E-V-E). Even though it seems to break the "I before E except after C" rule, "believe" uses IE not EI. Remember: "Hard to beLIEve there's a LIE in beLIEve" - the word LIE appears right in the middle.

Believe is spelled with IE because it's an exception to the "I before E except after C" rule, and the LIE pattern was established before the rule even existed. The rule would suggest "beleive" (since there's no C), but the correct spelling is "believe" with IE. This happens because "believe" comes from Old English "gelēfan," which evolved through Middle English "bileven." The IE pattern was established before the "I before E" rule was even created. Think of it this way: the LIE in beLIEve predates the rule.

Use the spelling trick "Hard to beLIEve there's a LIE in beLIEve," which creates an ironic connection that makes the IE spelling unforgettable. This creates an ironic, memorable connection - it's hard to believe (trust) when there's a lie (untruth) right in the middle of the word. The meta-humor makes it stick. When you picture LIE inside beLIEve, you'll never forget the IE spelling.

The most common misspellings are "beleive" (applying the "I before E" rule incorrectly), "belive" (missing an E entirely), and "beleave" (confusing it with "leave"). All three errors stem from pronunciation confusion and overapplying spelling rules. Remembering that there's a LIE in beLIEve helps avoid all these variations - the pattern is LIE, not LEI, LI, or LEA.

Yes, believe is an exception to the i before e except after c rule, and the rule has so many exceptions that spelling tricks are more reliable. The i before e except after c rule has so many exceptions that linguists debate whether it's even useful. Believe breaks the rule (IE without C before it), as do weird, seize, caffeine, protein, and science. The rule works for words like receive and ceiling (EI after C), but fails for many others. That's why spelling tricks like there's a LIE in beLIEve are more reliable than learning rules with countless exceptions.

Believe comes from Old English gelēfan meaning to have faith in or trust, and the IE spelling pattern came from Middle English orthography conventions, not phonetic logic. The prefix ge was a collective marker, and lēfan meant to allow or to hold dear. By Middle English (1200s), it became bileven or beleven, eventually settling on believe by the 1500s. The IE spelling pattern came from Middle English orthography conventions, not from phonetic logic. The word has always meant to accept as true or to have faith in.

Yes, the LIEVE pattern appears in believe, relieve, and aggrieve, and all use IE never EI when you see LIEVE at the end. All three use IE, not EI. However, achieve and retrieve break this pattern by using IE after different consonants. The consistent rule: when you see LIEVE at the end of a word, it's always spelled with IE, never EI. This makes believe, relieve, and their related forms predictable once you learn the pattern.