Urgent Help!!!!

[Arrilucea]

What is the difference in meaning between
I believe this to be a good idea
or
I believe this is a good idea

Thanks in in advance.

[Khosro]

What is the difference in meaning between
I believe this to be a good idea
or
I believe this is a good idea

Thanks in in advance.

Hello Arrilucea! Welcome board!

Once I read your sentences I felt a difference between them which I could not explain exactly. If I were to rewrite those 2 sentences I would write:

1- possibly this is a good idea.
2- In my opinion this is a good idea.

I think that the stress in "I believe this to be good idea" is more on the idea itself. In the second sentence ("I believe this is a good idea") there is more stress on your opinion than the first sentence. I also recommend you to take a look at this page:
Definition and pronunciation of believe | Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary

[Rover_KE]

What is the difference in meaning between
I believe this to be a good idea
or
I believe this is a good idea

Thanks in in advance.

They mean the same to me.

Rover

[Khosro]

They mean the same to me.

Rover

The same for me, but when you start to find the difference usually you find one which could be even senseless!

[Coolfootluke]

What is the difference in meaning between
I believe this to be a good idea
or
I believe this is a good idea

Thanks in in advance.

I am not a teacher.

They mean the same thing. The difference is in the grammar. In the first, the object of "believe" is an infinitive clause, "this to be a good idea", with "this" as subject and "idea" as object. In the second, the object is a subordinate clause with an understood "that": "that this is a good idea".

There is a semantic difference between the two uses of "believe" that I can't put my finger on, but it doesn't make the meanings of the two sentences different. The first is more "active", for want of a better word. It's something like the difference in "wish" between "We wish you a Merry Christmas" and "We wish that you should have a Merry Christmas."

[Khosro]

I am not a teacher.


There is a semantic difference between the two uses of "believe" that I can't put my finger on, but it doesn't make the meanings of the two sentences different. The first is more "active", for want of a better word. It's something like the difference in "wish" between "We wish you a Merry Christmas" and "We wish that you should have a Merry Christmas."

Yes. "wish" is a good example I think.

[Barb_D]

They mean the same to me.

Rover

And the same to me as well.

[Rover_KE]

And the same to me as well.

Thanks Barb.

I was beginning to wonder if I was missing something.

Rover
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