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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

How to Use Convince: Meaning, Usage & Examples (2 meaning)

Meaning 1：persuade successfully (convince)

convince 🔊

/kənˈvɪns/

vt.

To succeed in persuading someone to do something.

Illustration of convince meaning: one friend persuading another about a travel idea.

persuade successfully 🔊

➕

/pərˈsweɪd səkˈsɛsfəli/

vt.

To successfully persuade or influence someone to take a specific action or adopt a certain viewpoint, often through reasoning or presentation of arguments.

📁 Category：Social Economy 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Latin 'con-' (completely) + 'vincere' (to conquer). Thus, to completely conquer in argument.

💡 Mnemonic

Think of a courtroom lawyer's final argument that CONquers the jury's doubts, making them CONVINCED.

📖 Example

The excellent safety test results convinced him to buy the electric car. 🔊 The high-quality safety evaluation data successfully persuaded him to purchase the electric vehicle.

🔗 Collocations

convince someone to do something – Persuade a person to perform a specific action

be convinced that... – Hold a firm belief that something is true

try/hard to convince – Make a significant or persistent effort to persuade

🔄 Synonyms

persuade (vt.) – To cause someone to do something through reasoning or argument

induce (vt.) – To lead or influence someone to do something, often by offering incentives

win over (phrasal v.) – To gain someone's support or approval, often after initial resistance

🚫 Antonyms

dissuade (vt.) – To persuade someone not to take a particular course of action

deter (vt.) – To discourage someone from doing something by instilling doubt or fear

🌱 Derivatives

convinced (adj.) – Completely certain or sure about something

convincing (adj.) – Able to persuade someone that something is true or real; believable

conviction (n.) – A firmly held belief or opinion

📖 Cultural Story

The word 'convince' entered English in the 16th century from Latin 'convincere', meaning 'to overcome decisively in argument or proof'. Its roots lie in the Roman legal and rhetorical tradition, where persuading a jury or an audience was seen as a form of conquest. Today, it is a cornerstone of persuasive communication, used everywhere from academic debates to advertising.

Meaning 2：make someone believe (convince)

convince 🔊

/kənˈvɪns/

vt.

To make someone believe that something is true.

Cartoon of convince definition: a light bulb moment symbolizing making someone believe.

make someone believe 🔊

➕

/meɪk ˈsʌmˌwʌn bɪˈliv/

vt.

To cause someone to feel certain that a particular fact, idea, or situation is true, typically by providing evidence or a compelling argument.

📁 Category：Technological Inventions 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

The experiment's clear results finally convinced me of the theory's correctness. 🔊 The unambiguous outcomes of the experiment ultimately made me believe in the accuracy of the theory.

🔗 Collocations

convince someone of something – Make someone accept the truth or existence of something

remain unconvinced – Continue to not be persuaded or certain about something

fully/utterly convinced – Completely certain and without any doubt

🔄 Synonyms

assure (vt.) – To tell someone something positively to dispel any doubts

satisfy (vt.) – To provide someone with adequate information or proof so that they are content or free of doubt

prove to (phrasal v.) – To demonstrate to someone that something is true

🚫 Antonyms

doubt (vt.) – To feel uncertain about or question the truth of something

disbelieve (vt.) – To be unable or refuse to accept that something is true or real