Question

Read the last two lines of Shakespeare's "Sonnet 130.”

And yet by heaven, I think my love as rare,
As any she belied with false compare.

Which context clue best supports the definition of belied as "contradicted” or "disproved”?

“by heaven”
“I think my love”
“as rare, / As any”
“false compare”

Answer 1

“false compare”

Explanation: The word “false” signals something untrue, so “false compare” shows she was misrepresented — i.e., contradicted or disproved by a dishonest comparison.