ABSTRACT
Words are sometimes said to clothe our thoughts and beliefs. But, like some clothes, they usually reveal more than they conceal, often imposing shapes on our ideas which they might have lacked in their naked state. Beliefs put on the dress of language not only when they are exhibited but also when they travel from one person to another. Perhaps this whole sartorial imagery is wrongheaded. The very notion of beliefs or awareness episodes in their prelinguistic nudity may be a myth.
