CONVINCE

convert, win over, convince

(verb) make (someone) agree, understand, or realize the truth or validity of something; “He had finally convinced several customers of the advantages of his product”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Verb

convince (third-person singular simple present convinces, present participle convincing, simple past and past participle convinced)

To make someone believe, or feel sure about something, especially by using logic, argument or evidence.

To persuade.

(obsolete, transitive) To overcome, conquer, vanquish.

(obsolete, transitive) To confute; to prove wrong.

(obsolete, transitive) To prove guilty; to convict.

Synonyms

• persuade

• satisfy

• assure

• convert

• win over

Source: Wiktionary


Con*vince", v. t. [imp. & p.p. Convinced; p.pr. & vb.n. Convincing.] Etym: [L. convincere, -victum, to refute, prove; con- + vincere to conquer. See Victor, and cf. Convict.]

1. To overpower; to overcome; to subdue or master. [Obs.] His two chamberlains Will I with wine and wassail so convince That memory, the warder of the brain, Shall be a fume. Shak.

2. To overcome by argument; to force to yield assent to truth; to satisfy by proof. Such convincing proofs and assurances of it as might enable them to convince others. Atterbury.

3. To confute; to prove the fallacy of. [Obs.] God never wrought miracle to convince atheism, because his ordinary works convince it. Bacon.

4. To prove guilty; to convinct. [Obs.] Which of you convinceth me of sin John viii. 46. Seek not to convince me of a crime Which I can ne'er repent, nor you can pardon. Dryden.

Syn.

– To persuade; satisfy; convict.

– To Convince, persuade. To convince is an act of the understanding; to persuade, of the will or feelings. The one is effected by argument, the other by motives. There are cases, however, in which persuade may seem to be used in reference only to the assent of the understanding; as when we say, I am persuaded it is so; I can not persuade myself of the fact. But in such instances there is usually or always a degree of awakened feeling which has had its share in producing the assent of the understanding.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

28 November 2024

SYNCRETISM

(noun) the fusion of originally different inflected forms (resulting in a reduction in the use of inflections)


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Coffee Trivia

The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.

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