belive

/bɪˈlaɪv/

//bɪˈlaɪv// verb

"belive" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“belive” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #37,337. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#37,337
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
14
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To remain, stay.

Corpus desk

Index EN-belive · belive · English

belive · rank #37,337 · 8 variants · 14 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #37,337
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 14 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH batty

Nearest frequency peer: batty (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “belive”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “belive” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

belive vs belle
67% similar
belive vs blige
67% similar
belive vs beside
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for belive
PropertyValue
Headwordbelive
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/bɪˈlaɪv/
Letters6
Frequency rank#37,337
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs14
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “belive”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).belivelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “batty” (#37,336), “bellow” (#37,338), “belvedere” (#37,339). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “belive” is #37,337. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around belive (IPA /bɪˈlaɪv/), averb. Corpus frequency is #37,337 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Dominant gloss: "To remain, stay.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for belive, with forms such as "bbelive", "beilve", and "believ". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 14 confusable-pair relationships, "belle", "blige", "beside", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English beliven, from Old English belīfan (“to remain”), from Proto-West Germanic *bilīban, from Proto-Germanic *bilībaną (“to remain”), from Proto-Germanic *bi- + Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“to stick, glue”). Cognate with West Frisian bliuwe (… The correct English form is belive, spelled B-E-L-I-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To remain, stay.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how belive appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. … God helpe me so, the best is thus to done. “Rise, let us speake of lustie life in Troy That we have lad, and forth the time drive, And eke of time coming us rejoy, That bringen shall our blisse now to blive, …"
  2. So there bleveth no more, but I that am servant to the spirit, may lie down and die. In which death I glorify myself, but I am greatly troubled in my mind, that my riches which I had ordained to God be wasted and spent in foul things.

Etymology

From Middle English beliven, from Old English belīfan (“to remain”), from Proto-West Germanic *bilīban, from Proto-Germanic *bilībaną (“to remain”), from Proto-Germanic *bi- + Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“to stick, glue”). Cognate with West Frisian bliuwe (“to stay”), Dutch blijven (“to remain”), German bleiben (“to remain”), Danish blive (“to be, remain”). More at leave.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbelive
  • beilve
  • believ
  • belivve
  • bellive
  • belvie
  • bleive
  • eblive

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of belive - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

bbelive1beilve2believ2belivve1bellive1belvie2bleive2eblive2
Edit distance from "belive"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "belive"?
"belive" is spelled B-E-L-I-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /bɪˈlaɪv/.
What does "belive" mean?
As a verb, "belive" means: To remain, stay.
What words are commonly confused with "belive"?
"belive" is commonly confused with "belle", "blige", "beside". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "belive"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "belive" is /bɪˈlaɪv/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "belive"?
From Middle English beliven, from Old English belīfan (“to remain”), from Proto-West Germanic *bilīban, from Proto-Germanic *bilībaną (“to remain”), from Proto-Germanic *bi- + Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“to stick, glue”). Cognate with West Frisia... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "belive", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list