Trust and believe are two of the most common terms used together in a context or even in a conversation. Both of these terms might be used together but they have got a different meaning. Many people often tend to make the mistake of jumbling them up while using in a sentence or say in a conversation.
It is important to know the meaning between the two and also when and where to use the terms. It often happens during an examination you can be asked a question that how these two terms are different from each other. So, there should be no confusion because they both have different meanings and are used differently according to the context.
Trust vs Believe
The main difference between trust and believe is that believing in reality whereas believe means accepting that something is not true especially something that is without any proof. As you can see that both these terms are almost interrelated to each other but have differences in their meaning.
Comparison Table Between Trust and Believe
| Parameters of Comparison | Trust | Believe |
| Meaning | Trust means believing the reliability, truth, or in someone’s ability. | Believe means accepting something that to be true or real. |
| Noun and verb | Both noun and verb | Only verb. |
| Element of Understanding | In trust there is that element of understanding | The element of understanding is absent in believe. |
| Examples | Relationships are built on trust. | Raj cannot believe that he found his lost wallet. |
| Personal and Social | Trust is personal | Believe is social. |
What is Trust?
Trust means to believe in reliability or someone’s ability. It is an unseen thing that happens only in the mind and is reflected in someone’s actions. Trust is something that is very important to have right from your friends’ circle or your colleagues to your family members.
People say they trust their family more than anyone else in the whole world and some say they trust their friends. However, trust depends on each individual’s state of mind. It is you who will decide whom to trust and whom not to trust.
Say suppose you need urgent help from somebody then whom do you think first to call for help. The person whom you call for help at first is the person whom you trust the most. Now, that person can be anyone because it can be your friend, family, or even your neighbour.
Trust takes time to build and because of building trust one can have a better relationship with the other person. Trust can also be broken and I think most of you have experienced the feeling of broken trust.
One can also ask to trust someone because if your intentions are pure and the other person is not yet trusting your instincts then you can ask the other person to trust you. But, it depends on the other person to trust you or not because trust cannot be done forcefully as it takes time to build.
Now, to make someone trust you, you have to take desired actions to make the other person trust you. Say suppose you promise a person that you will complete a certain task for that person within a particular period of time and you do complete it within that particular time then it becomes more likely that the other person will automatically trust you.
Trust comes from one’s personal beliefs and thoughts and that is why trust is personal because not every person will have the same kind of thought about someone.
What is Believe?
Believe means having faith in something or someone. In other words, believe means accepting something is true but without any kind of proof. Believe is not like trust because believing in God has a different meaning than trusting in God.
Belief is social and it can be both personal or impersonal because what you believe can be believed by thousands of others. The best example to take is believing in the Hinduism religion. Well, if you are a Hindu then you do believe in the Hindu rules and regulations and also the Hindu gods. But, it is not only you who is the sole follower of Hinduism because there are thousands of others like you who follow Hinduism.
This is the reason why believe is a social term, unlike a trust. Let us take another example here: I do not believe in ghosts. Well, the sentence means that believing in ghosts is fake because it is not true and it is without proof. So, the sentence here was made by a single person but that sentence can be made in another way round too. ‘My friends and I do not believe in ghosts’.
The above sentence has made it clear that believe is not personal because without proof you cannot believe in something. Another example: I believe he will pass the examination. In this sentence, you think that the person will pass his examination and the examination has not been conducted yet but you think he will pass his exams.
Main Differences Between Trust and Believe
- Trust means believing in reliability, or in someone’s ability to do something whereas believe means accepting something that has no proof.
- Trust is both a noun and a verb whereas believe is only a verb.
- Trust is said to be personal whereas believe is social.
- Trust requires the element of understanding whereas believe does not require that element.
- Trust cannot be forcefully done to others because trust takes time to build.
Conclusion
Trust and believe are important not in all matters but in most they are important. Trusting someone to do something will build a better relationship between the two which is a great thing. There will come a time when you will be needing someone to hold your back and it is then your most trusted person who will help you.
References
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00048409412345881
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1075547012441691