Benefit of the Doubt: Meaning, Useful Examples with Synonyms List in English

“The benefit of the doubt” meaning! Are you looking for the definition of the idiom “the benefit of the doubt.” This lesson will provide how and when to use this phrase with useful examples and ESL picture.

Table of Contents

The Benefit of the Doubt Meaning

What Does “Benefit of the Doubt” Mean?

The expression “benefit of the doubt” means that you believe that someone is telling the truth and taking his/her word even though there are doubts and they might be lying.

When you decide to give someone the benefit of doubt, you believe the person rather than being suspicious when you have the possibility of doing either.

Example Sentences

Let’s look at some examples below to understand more about this idiom:

The referee gave him the benefit of the doubt.
Every defendant is entitled to the benefit of the doubt.
I won’t make up my mind about people; I’m always trying to give them the benefit of the doubt.
She may have been lying, but I felt I had to give her the benefit of the doubt.
She smiled and seemed to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Something didn’t seem quite right, but I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.
She claimed she wasn’t trying to commit suicide, and doctors gave her the benefit of the doubt.
Crucially, investors never gave it the full benefit of the doubt on commodity prices anyway.
They may have been lying, but I felt I had to give them the benefit of the doubt.
When Anna didn’t do her homework, the teacher didn’t give her the benefit of doubt and decided to punish her.
I’m prepared to give her the benefit of the doubt on this occasion.
She told us a story about her success, and we gave her the benefit of the doubt.