Definitions for CONVINCEkənˈvɪns

Random House Webster's College Dictionary

con•vince^*kənˈvɪns(v.t.)-vinced, -vinc•ing.

to move by argument or evidence to belief, agreement, consent, or a course of action:
to convince you of his guilt.
Category: Common Vocabulary
Obs. to prove or find guilty.
Obs. to overcome; vanquish.

^* Usage: convince , an often stated rule says, may be followed only by that or of, never by to: We convinced him that he should enter (not convinced him to enter) the contest. He was convinced of the wisdom of entering. In support of the rule, convince is often contrasted with persuade , which may take to, of, or that:We persuaded him to seek counseling (or of his need for counseling or that he should seek counseling). The history of usage does not support the rule. convince (someone) to has been in use since the 16th century and, despite some objections, occurs today in all varieties of speech and writing and is fully standard.

Origin of convince:

1520–30; < L convincere to prove (guilt), demonstrate =con-con - +vincere to overcome

con•vinc′er(n.)

Princeton's WordNet

convert, win over, convince(verb)
make (someone) agree, understand, or realize the truth or validity of something
"He had finally convinced several customers of the advantages of his product"

Kernerman English Learner's Dictionary

convince(verb)ənˈvɪns
to persuade sb that sth is true
He tried to convince her that he serious.
convinceənˈvɪns
to persuade sb to do sth
politicians convincing people to vote for them

Wiktionary

convince(Verb)
To make someone believe, or feel sure about something, especially by using logic, argument or evidence.
convince(Verb)
To overcome, conquer, vanquish.
convince(Verb)
To confute (someone); to prove (someone) wrong; to overcome (someone) in argument.

Origin: From convincere, from con- + vinco.

Webster Dictionary

Convince(verb)
to overpower; to overcome; to subdue or master
Convince(verb)
to overcome by argument; to force to yield assent to truth; to satisfy by proof
Convince(verb)
to confute; to prove the fallacy of
Convince(verb)
to prove guilty; to convict