credimus

Credimus is a Latin verb form meaning "we believe." It is the first-person plural present indicative of credo, credere, to believe or to trust. As a grammatical form, credimus denotes that the speaker and others together hold a belief in the present moment.

Etymology and related forms: Credo, credere forms the same verb family. The root cred- has produced a number of English derivatives, including creed, credit, credulous, and credible, all echoing the sense of belief, trust, or reliability. The present plural form credimus is one of several person-number combinations the verb adopts in Latin, illustrating how subject pronouns are often implicit in the verb ending.

Usage in Latin: Credimus appears in texts where the subject is a group, such as a speaker and collaborators or a community. It is frequently encountered in literary, philosophical, or religious contexts, where communal judgment or confession is being stated. In religious Latin, the singular form credo is more common for personal statements of faith, while credimus can appear in contexts emphasizing collective belief or creedal affirmation by a group.

Significance: As an example of the Latin first-person plural, credimus helps illustrate how Latin expresses collective action and belief through verb morphology. The form also highlights the broader connection between Latin and its descendants in the way modern languages convey “we believe” in everyday and formal discourse.

See also: credo, credere, creed, credit, credible.