the benefit of the doubt
noun phrase
: the state of accepting something/someone as honest or deserving of trust even though there are doubts
He might be lying, but we have to give him the benefit of the doubt and accept what he says for now.
Examples of the benefit of the doubt in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Semiconductors were up more than 2% as a group but remain almost 8% below their highs, investors persistently stingy about giving the group the benefit of the doubt that scarcity economics around AI will continue deep into next year.
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Michael Santoli, CNBC, 18 Dec. 2025
Growth usually solves all for Wall Street and Lululemon and McDonald earned the benefit of the doubt from investors, who hardly blinked when the company’s $500 million pandemic-era deal to buy Mirror, an in-home fitness company, went south.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 11 Dec. 2025
Despite the uncertainty of future payoffs, investors are giving the tech giants the benefit of the doubt on their AI plans, at least so far.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 2 Dec. 2025
Notre Dame, meanwhile, has received more of the benefit of the doubt, though the Irish almost certainly can’t lose again, either.
—Grace Raynor, New York Times, 11 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for the benefit of the doubt
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Michael Santoli, CNBC, 18 Dec. 2025
Growth usually solves all for Wall Street and Lululemon and McDonald earned the benefit of the doubt from investors, who hardly blinked when the company’s $500 million pandemic-era deal to buy Mirror, an in-home fitness company, went south.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 11 Dec. 2025
Despite the uncertainty of future payoffs, investors are giving the tech giants the benefit of the doubt on their AI plans, at least so far.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 2 Dec. 2025
Notre Dame, meanwhile, has received more of the benefit of the doubt, though the Irish almost certainly can’t lose again, either.
—Grace Raynor, New York Times, 11 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for the benefit of the doubt
Cite this Entry
“The benefit of the doubt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20benefit%20of%20the%20doubt. Accessed 29 Dec. 2025.
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