Disbelief is the feeling you get when something seems so unlikely or strange that you can't accept it as true. When your teacher announces that there's no homework for an entire month, you might stare in disbelief, wondering if you heard correctly. When a friend tells you they met a famous actor at the grocery store, your disbelief shows in your raised eyebrows and skeptical expression.

Disbelief sits somewhere between doubt and outright rejection. You're not saying something is definitely false, but you're having trouble believing it's real. Picture a student who studied hard for a test and then stares at her perfect score in disbelief, amazed that all her effort paid off.

People often describe being “in disbelief” when reality contradicts their expectations. A soccer team might watch in disbelief as their star player misses an easy goal. A scientist might shake her head in disbelief when an experiment produces completely unexpected results.

The phrase suspension of disbelief describes what happens when you enjoy a story even though you know it's not real. When you watch a movie about talking animals or read a book about wizards, you temporarily set aside your disbelief to enjoy the adventure.