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Meaning & use

suspend your disbelief

phrase·Advanced

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UK/səˌspend jɔː ˌdɪsbɪˈliːf/
US/səˌspend jʊr ˌdɪsbɪˈliːf/

Meanings

  1. phraseidiom

    To accept that something in a story is not real so that you can enjoy it.

    Grammar: A fixed phrase: the possessive can change ('my', 'his', 'their'), but the verb stays 'suspend'.

    Patterns

    • suspend your disbelief
    • ask someone to suspend their disbelief
    • suspend disbelief

    If you can suspend your disbelief for two hours, the film is a lot of fun.

    The play asks the audience to suspend their disbelief when the actors speak directly to them.

    I found it hard to suspend my disbelief once the hero survived a plane crash unharmed.

  2. phraseidiomfigurative

    To stop doubting someone or something for a while and accept what you are told.

    Grammar: Used more broadly, often with 'and': 'suspend your disbelief and listen'.

    Patterns

    • suspend your disbelief and do something

    Just suspend your disbelief and let the magician finish his trick.

    For a moment she suspended her disbelief and believed his excuse.

Common combinations

ask the audience to suspend their disbelief
The director asks the audience to suspend their disbelief from the first scene.
hard to suspend your disbelief
It's hard to suspend your disbelief when the special effects look so cheap.
willing to suspend your disbelief
Viewers are willing to suspend their disbelief if the characters feel real.
suspend disbelief entirely
The novel never lets you suspend disbelief entirely.

Synonyms and how they differ

go along with
'Go along with something' means to accept it without arguing; it is more general and does not specifically suggest enjoying a fictional story.
accept
'Accept' is the plain general word; 'suspend your disbelief' is the literary phrase for temporarily ignoring that something is impossible.

Word family

disbelief noun
a feeling that something is not true or real
suspend verb
to stop something for a period, or to hang something
suspension noun
the act of stopping something for a time

Commonly confused: suspend your disbelief or disbelief? suspend your disbelief or unbelief?

suspend your disbelief vs disbelief

Disbelief alone means the feeling of not believing; the full idiom is about setting that feeling aside on purpose.

suspend your disbelief vs unbelief

'Unbelief' is mainly used for lack of religious faith, not for enjoying a story.

Practice

Complete the sentence: 'The movie is silly, but if you suspend your ______, you will enjoy it.'

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Write a sentence using “suspend your disbelief”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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