- the state or appearance of being convinced
- a fixed or firmly held belief, opinion, etc
- the act of convincing
- the act or an instance of convicting or the state of being convicted
- carry conviction ⇒ to be convincing
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
con•vic•tion /kənˈvɪkʃən/USA pronunciation
n.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026-
- [uncountable] firm belief:He spoke with conviction and sincerity.
- [countable] a fixed or firm belief:He has no convictions, so he'll do anything for money.
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- [countable] the declaration, as by a jury, that someone is guilty of breaking the law or committing a crime.
- [uncountable] the sentence one must serve for being declared guilty:conviction was for five years.
con•vic•tion
(kən vik′shən),USA pronunciation n.
con•vic′tion•al, adj.
- a fixed or firm belief.
- the act of convicting.
- the state of being convicted.
- the act of convincing.
- the state of being convinced.
- Late Latin convictiōn- (stem of convictiō) proof (of guilt). See convict, -ion
- late Middle English 1400–50
- 1. See belief.
- 5. doubt, uncertainty.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
conviction /kənˈvɪkʃən/ n
'conviction' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
attainder
- belief
- chicken out
- Cullen
- doubt
- endorse
- faint
- faith
- feel
- lukewarm
- must
- record
- refusenik
- Ribbentrop
- sure
- unsafe
- vehement
- weak
- wimp out
- amnesty
- authority
- believe
- certitude
- complex ion
- court-martial
- creed
- declare
- defeatism
- disillusion
- doubtless
- fish
- infamous
- infamy
- magical thinking
- maintain
- moderne
- opinion
- overpowering
- persuasion
- picturesque
- plea bargaining
- preclude
- prior
- prison
- religion
- with
- sink