Confusing words: Breath vs. Breathe, Belief vs. Believe

BREATH vs. BREATHE 

English learners often times find it difficult to use breath and breathe correctly. 

What is the difference between these two words? Let's find out. 

Breath is a noun. 
breath BrE /breθ/ ; NAmE /breθ/

Breath is the air that you take into your lungs and send out again. 

Examples: 

• I opened the window and took a deep breath. 
• Take a deep breath and try to relax. 
• Take a deep breath before diving into water. 
• How long can you hold your breath for?
• I felt a bit short of breath and had to sit down. (= had difficulty breathing) 
• I'm a bit out of breath after running. (= unable to breathe comfortably because of tiredness) 
• She was out of breath when she got her birthday present. (= unable to breathe comfortably because of excitement.) 
• I'm going outside for a breath of fresh air. 
• Smoking gives you bad breath. 
• His breath smelt of garlic. 
• When she said she had been fired, I caught my breath in surprise. 

​Breathe, with an 'e' at the end, is a verb. 
breathe BrE /briːð/ ; NAmE /briːð/ 

Breathe means to take air into your lungs and send it out again through your nose or mouth - that is to inhale and exhale.  

Examples: 

• Just breathe deeply and calm down. 
• The air was so cold that we could hardly breathe. 
• Most people don't realise that they are breathing polluted air. 
• Open your mouth and breathe through your nose. 
• It's so hot today that I can barely breathe. 
• She breathed slowly in and out. 
• It was great to be outside again and breathe the fresh air. 

Idiom 
breathe easy = to relax and stop worrying 

Example: 

• You can breathe easy - I'm not going to tell anyone.  

Remember: 
breath - noun 
breathe - verb 


Now let's focus on two other words. 
​
BELIEF vs. BELIEVE 

Belief is a noun. 
belief BrE /bɪˈliːf/ ; NAmE /bɪˈliːf/ 

Belief is a strong feeling that something / somebody exists or is true. 
belief (in something / somebody) 

Examples: 

• belief in God / democracy 
• His belief in God gave him hope during difficult times. 

belief [singular, uncountable] - belief that... - an opinion about something; something that you think is true 

Examples: 

• Their working system is based on the belief that people work more productively in a team. 
• She moved to London in the belief that this would help her career. 
• There is a belief among young people that education is a waste of time. 

belief [countable, usually plural] - something that you believe, especially as part of your religion 

Examples: 

• religious / political beliefs 
• beliefs about the origin of the universe 
• He tried to impose his beliefs on other people. 
• You must respect other people's beliefs. 

Believe is a verb. 
believe BrE /bɪˈliːv/ ; NAmE /bɪˈliːv/

To believe means to feel certain that something is true or that somebody is telling you the truth. 

Examples: 

• They believe in the power of education. 
• I believe she's telling the truth. 
• We believe in democracy. 

To think that something is true or possible, although you're not completely certain. 

Examples: 

• 'Where does she come from?' 'Vietnam, I believe.' 
• 'Does he still work for the same company?' 'I believe so.' / 'I believe not.'

believe that... - to have the opinion that something is right or true 

Examples: 

• She believes that eating dairy products is unhealthy. 
• Vegetarians believe that killing animals for food is unethical. 

don't / can't believe - it is used when you are surprised or annoyed at something 

Examples: 

• believe that... - She couldn't believe that she got the job. 
• I can't believe I'm going to South Korea to meet them for the first time. 

Exercise 

Complete the sentences with breath, breathe, belief or believe. 

1. Take a deep ................
2. Make sure to ................ deeply. 
​3. Finding it hard to ................ inside the exam room, I stepped out for a ................ of fresh air. 
4. We all inhabit this small planet. We all ................ the same air. 
5. Don't ................ on me. I don't want to get sick. 
6. The three most common ................. that consumers have about shopping online are that it saves time, saves money and helps find products that best match needs. 
7. Do consumers ................ advertising? 
8. With more than $140 billion spent on advertising each year, how much do consumers ................? 
9. Changing one's ................ is not easy. 
​10. The ................ you have about anything in your life are created over a period of time through a consistent way of thinking. 


Answers: 
1. breath; 2. breathe; 3. breathe, breath; 4. breathe; 5. breathe; 6. beliefs; 7. believe; 8. believe;
9. beliefs; 10. beliefs;