Meaning of swear in English

Table of contents

Verb
swear
Etymology
Old English swerian of Germanic origin; related to Dutch zweren, German schwören, also to answer
Definitions
1. utter obscenities or profanities
Examples
- « The drunken men were cursing loudly in the street »
Derived terms
2. to declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true
Examples
- « Before God I swear I am innocent »
Derived terms
3. promise solemnly
Examples
- « take an oath »
Derived terms
- swearer
4. make a deposition
Examples
- « declare under oath »
Derived terms
5. have confidence or faith in
Examples
- « We can trust in God »
- « Rely on your friends »
- « bank on your good education »
- « I swear by my grandmother's recipes »
Antonyms
Derived terms

Famous quotes

« My two secrets to staying healthy: wash your hands all the time. And, if you can't, use Purell or one of the sanitizers. And the other is hot peppers. I eat a lot of hot peppers. I for some reason started doing that in 1992, and I swear by it. »
Hillary Clinton
« I really did put up all my wedding pictures on my website. And I swear to you, my wedding pictures got downloaded just as much as my bikini pictures. »
Cindy Margolis
« Sure, the comedians who swear or use scatological humor can get laughs, but they're uncomfortable laughs. »
John Ratzenberger
« Madam, I have been looking for a person who disliked gravy all my life let us swear eternal friendship. »
Sydney Smith
« I swear I want to be a food model. »
Amy Sedaris