What's the difference between believe and contend?

Believe


Definition:

  • (n.) To exercise belief in; to credit upon the authority or testimony of another; to be persuaded of the truth of, upon evidence furnished by reasons, arguments, and deductions of the mind, or by circumstances other than personal knowledge; to regard or accept as true; to place confidence in; to think; to consider; as, to believe a person, a statement, or a doctrine.
  • (v. i.) To have a firm persuasion, esp. of the truths of religion; to have a persuasion approaching to certainty; to exercise belief or faith.
  • (v. i.) To think; to suppose.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) Unfortunately, due to confidentiality clauses that have been imposed on us by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, we are unable to provide our full names and … titles … However, we believe the evidence that will be submitted will validate the statements that we are making in this submission.” The submission detailed specific allegations – including names and dates – of sexual abuse of child detainees, violence and bullying of children, suicide attempts by children and medical neglect.
  • (2) It has been generally believed that the ligand-binding of steroid hormone receptors triggers an allosteric change in receptor structure, manifested by an increased affinity of the receptor for DNA in vitro and nuclear target elements in vivo, as monitored by nuclear translocation.
  • (3) The sound of the ambulance frightened us, especially us children, and panic gripped the entire community: people believe that whoever is taken into the ambulance to the hospital will die – you so often don’t see them again.
  • (4) 8.47pm: Cameron says he believes Britain's best days lie ahead and that he believes in public service.
  • (5) Ryzhkov added: "I believe they want to keep him in prison for another three or four years at least, so he is not released until well after the next presidential elections in 2012."
  • (6) Of the 622 people interviewed, a large proportion (30.5%) believed that the first deciduous tooth should erupt between the age of 5-7 months; the next commonly mentioned time of tooth eruption was 7-9 months of age; and 50.3% of the respondents claimed to have seen a case of prematurely erupted primary teeth.
  • (7) Parents believed they should try to normalize their child's experiences, that interactions with health care professionals required negotiation and assertiveness, and that they needed some support person(s) outside of the family.
  • (8) The so-called literati aren't insular – this from a woman who ran the security service – but we aren't going to apologise for what we believe in either.
  • (9) They were protecting the sit-in because they believed that, if they left, the police would follow them."
  • (10) Batson believes there is a “mood” that needs to be seized upon.
  • (11) There are widespread examples across the US of the police routinely neglecting crimes of sexual violence and refusing to believe victims.
  • (12) United believe it is more likely the right-back can be bought in the summer but are exploring what would represent the considerable coup of acquiring the 26-year-old immediately.
  • (13) Does anybody honestly believe the vast majority of migrants don’t want that too?
  • (14) Although, it did give me the confidence to believe that my voice was valid and important.
  • (15) That is, he believes, to look at massively difficult, interlocking problems through too narrow a lens.
  • (16) However the imagery is more complex, because scholars believe it also relates to another cherished pre-Raphaelite Arthurian legend, Sir Degrevaunt who married his mortal enemy's daughter.
  • (17) After examining the cases reported in literature (Sacks, Barabas, Beighton Sykes), they point out that, contrary to what is generally believed, the syndrome is not rare and cases, sporadic or familial, of recurrent episodes of spontaneous rupture of the intestine and large vessels or peripheral arteries are frequent.
  • (18) Gordon Brown believes that the fact of the G20 summit has persuaded many tax havens, such as Switzerland and Liechtenstein, to indicate that they will adopt a more open approach.
  • (19) I believe that truth sets man free.” It was a curious stance for someone who spent many years undercover as a counter-espionage informant, a government propagandist, and unofficial asset of the Central Intelligence Agency.
  • (20) Whenever you are ill and a medicine is prescribed for you and you take the medicine until balance is achieved in you and then you put that medicine down.” Farrakhan does not dismiss the doctrine of the past, but believes it is no longer appropriate for the present.

Contend


Definition:

  • (v. i.) To strive in opposition; to contest; to dispute; to vie; to quarrel; to fight.
  • (v. i.) To struggle or exert one's self to obtain or retain possession of, or to defend.
  • (v. i.) To strive in debate; to engage in discussion; to dispute; to argue.
  • (v. t.) To struggle for; to contest.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) Duesberg contends that HIV is neither necessary nor sufficient to cause AIDS.
  • (2) It is contended that the latter is the main factor in its production as opposed to the more common external rotation variety.
  • (3) The truth is, some of these attacks would be leveled against any Republican presidential contender.
  • (4) What did surprise pundits was Hollywood's recognition of this unflinching Austrian film about ageing as a candidate for best picture, among such expected contenders as Steven Spielberg's Lincoln , Ben Affleck's Argo and Tom Hooper's Les Misérables .
  • (5) The mayor needs to be in parliament to challenge other contenders for the party's leadership, such as George Osborne and Theresa May.
  • (6) Defence lawyers contended that Saiful's testimony about the alleged sodomy, at a Kuala Lumpur condominium in 2008, was riddled with inconsistencies and the DNA evidence mishandled by investigators.
  • (7) Although Menzies, et al., report that survival rates are higher than previously expected and that in most cases the children's and parents' lives appear not to be excessively burdensome, the Working Group contends that there "continues to be ethical justification for selective treatment" of such newborns.
  • (8) Romney contends the president is a nice guy who has failed to make things better.
  • (9) Radiotherapy after limited resection of craniopharyngiomas has been advocated by some investigators while others contend radical resections by means of advanced surgical techniques afford better outcome of patients.
  • (10) Despite spanning more than 1,300 acres it will not, apparently, be a contender for the title of world's largest: that appears still to reside with the 47-stage Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad, India, as certified by Guinness World Records .
  • (11) Those seeking to stop the project contend that the $997m joint venture, signed in May 2010, did not undergo parliamentary scrutiny because it was concluded under the previous military regime.
  • (12) Although acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is clearly a public health threat, Beauchamp contends that the view that it is also a threat to the majority's values is a form of potentially counterproductive legal moralism.
  • (13) The author contends that changes in psychoanalytic theory are currently facilitating a more experiential view of the Rorschach.
  • (14) And he will contend, with a laugh, that therefore by any objective criteria, at 54, his career should be over already, while all the time doing everything in his power to prove the opposite.
  • (15) Scott Walker says building Canada border wall is a 'legitimate issue' Read more The governor, who is running well behind among the 17 contenders in the Republican White House race, sought to draw a distinction between his proposal and what he called Donald Trump’s “simplistic” idea on how to deal with an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the US.
  • (16) The prosecution contended that while that manoeuvre was lawful, his repeated use of a baton against her legs showed the officer had lost his self-control.
  • (17) It represents something of a vindication for Spielberg whose last high-minded awards contender, the first-world-war drama War Horse, failed to win anything at the last edition of either the Globes or the Oscars.
  • (18) Before we meet, I have to have a stern talk with myself about not mentioning the game last August in which all Arsenal fans will contend that Barton got new signing Gervinho sent off on his debut; he's had similarly abrasive encounters since with fellow midfielders, Karl Henry from Wolves and Norwich's Bradley Johnson, the latter earning him a three-match ban.
  • (19) With four matches to take the crown, a single strength can make the difference for the remaining contenders.
  • (20) It’s a massive inconvenience to have to check a laptop, and you can imagine that such a demand is met with resistance by air carriers, who are powerful lobbies.” US airlines have been lobbying the Trump administration to intervene in the Persian Gulf, where they have contended for years that the investments in three rapidly expanding airlines in the area – Etihad Airways, Qatar, and Emirates – constitute unfair government subsidies with which Delta, American and United cannot compete.