Emily Dickinson Lexicon

believe (-d, -s, believing), v. [see belief, n.] (webplay: arguments, baptized, certainty, circumstances, credit, doubt, earth, estimate, expect, faith, full, God, heaven, held, hope, knowledge, live, Lord, persuasion, promised, receives, religion, result, see, sons, strong, suppose, testimony, think, true, trust, way, witness).

1. Credit; trust; expect; hope; have faith in; assent to; give credence to; place confidence in; accept as true; consider as authentic; (see Isaiah 43:10).
2. Suppose; think; hold an opinion; (see John 4:50).
3. Phrase. “Make believe”: pretend; imagine.

bell (-s), n. [OE, possibly 'roar, loud noise'.] (webplay: awake, ball, bear the bell, birds, buds, cannon, churches, composition, containing, cup, ear, electrical, end, first, flowers, golden, grow, hand-bells, houses, hung, kings, leader, meeting, metals, mixture, move, nightly rounds, notify, private, ring, sentinel-box, servants, small, solid, sounds, streets, time).

1. Declaration; proclamation; [word play on “belle”] debutante; lovely maiden; pretty one.
2. Carillon; belfry; community signal; cup-shaped chiming implement hanging in the bell tower of a church; clock instrument used to send public messages and mark time.
3. Ringing instrument; signal of victory.
4. Sonorant vessel; hollow body; resonating instrument; cast metal casing that emits a clear musical sound, by the sonorous vibration of its entire circumference; inverted deep cup with a recurving brim, which is struck by a clapper suspended from the center of the interior.
5. Time period; range of time.
6. Door ringer; entry signal.
7. Reverberation; sound waves; geometric curve; heavenly orbit; [fig.] prayer; communion; communication with Deity.
8. Cup-shaped bloom; corolla of a blossom; calyx of a flower.
9. Clock; time-keeper; object rung to announce the hours.
10. Signal system; [fig.] rejoicing; sound of people rising in the resurrection.
11. Joy; sounding of good news.
12. Church signal.
13. Noise-maker; loud signal; [Webster] “those who went the nightly rounds in camps or garrisons, used to ring a bell, at each sentinel box, to see that the soldier on duty was awake.”
14. Knell; funeral signal.
15. Tinkling ornament; (see Zechariah 14:20; see also Webster 1844: “The blue tunic of the Jewish high-priest was adorned with golden bells; and the kings of Persia … adorned with them in like manner”).
16. Military signal.
17. Alarm; signal of danger; [Webster: “Bells were also put on the necks of criminals, to warn persons to move out of the way.”]
18. Phrase. “Currer Bell”: (see Bell, Currer, proper n.)

Bell, proper n. [see bell, n.; see also Bronte, proper n. and Currer, proper n.] (webplay: ear, birds, meeting, nightly, sounds).

Currer Bell; Charlotte Brontë (1816-1855); acrostic pen name using the initials “C” and “B”; early 19th century British woman who wrote Jane Eyre ; pseudonym that the author used for publishing her novels; (see ED letters).

belle (-s), n. [Fr. < L. 'beautiful, fair'.]

Gentlewoman; young woman; lovely lady; blithe creature; [fig.] angel; flower; airborne seedling.

belles lettres, n. [Fr. 'fine letters, literary studies'.] (webplay: learning).

Literature; elegant writing; high art; polite studies; grammar, rhetoric, and poetry; [fig.] scriptural history; biblical tradition.

bellows, n. [OE blæstbel, blast-bag, blowing-bag.] (webplay: air).

Air pumping implement; machine for blowing fire; instrument used to give a blast of air; [fig.] twin organs that circulate air in the body; (see Jeremiah 6:29).

belong (belonged, -s), v. [ME.] (webplay: building, forgiveness, other, world).

1. Appertain; be related.
2. Pertain; be a possession of.
3. Be dear; attach emotionally.
4. Have a right to.
5. Be a product of; be a part of; (see Genesis 40:8).
6. Remain; continue; endure; persist; have a permanent place.
7. Originate; fit in.
8. Phrase. “Belong to”: be the property of.
9. Phrase. “Belong to”: come from; be a child of; be the responsibility of.

beloved, n. [see beloved, adj.] (webplay: loved).

Dear one; romantic interest; person one cares about deeply; [fig.] bride (see Ephesians 1:6).

beloved, verbal adj. [ME biluven, to love.] (webplay: heart, loved).

Dear; admired; adored; cherished; esteemed; favored; revered; venerated; reverenced; intimately related.

below, adv. [ME be, prep. + low, adj.] (webplay: child, the heavens above the earth below, high).

1. Lower down; at a lower level; in a lower position relative to another place.
2. Entombed; below the ground; in the grave; buried in the earth.
3. Closer to the ground; near the surface of the earth.
4. Inferior; less in dignity; lower in quality; subordinate to someone.
5. On the earth; in mortality.
6. Down a slope.
7. Underneath; directly beneath; under the structure.
8. Within the earth.