swear

American  

[swair] / swɛər /

verb (used without object)

• swears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• swore,
  past
• sware,
  past (Archaic)
• sworn,
  past participle
• swearing
  present participle

1. to make a solemn declaration or affirmation by some sacred being or object, as a deity or the Bible.

   Synonyms:

   avow, affirm, declare

2. to bind oneself by oath.

3. to give evidence or make a statement on oath.

   Synonyms:

   testify, depose

4. to use profane oaths or language.

   Don't swear in front of the children.

   Synonyms:

   imprecate

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verb (used with object)

• swears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• swore,
  past
• sware,
  past (Archaic)
• sworn,
  past participle
• swearing
  present participle

1. to declare, affirm, attest, etc., by swearing by a deity, some sacred object, etc.

2. to affirm, assert, or say with solemn earnestness.

3. to promise or undertake on oath or in a solemn manner; vow.

4. to testify or state on oath.

   He swore it on the witness stand.

5. to take (an oath), as in order to give solemnity or force to a declaration, promise, etc.

6. to bind by an oath.

   to swear someone to secrecy.

noun

• swears
  plural

1. Informal. a profane or obscene word; curse word.

   If we said a swear, Mom made us put a quarter in the jar.

   Heads-up—this movie trailer is full of swears and is NSFW.

verb phrase

1. swear by

   1. to name (a sacred being or thing) as one's witness or guarantee in swearing.

   2. Informal. to have great confidence in; rely on.

      He swears by his dentist.

   3. to have certain knowledge of.

      I thought I saw him leaving, but I couldn't swear by it.

2. swear off to promise or resolve to give up something.

   I've decided to swear off the internet one day a week.

   Have you sworn off red meat?

3. swear in to admit to office or service by administering an oath.

   A new president will be sworn in today.

4. swear out to secure (a warrant for arrest) by making an accusation under oath.

swear British  

/ swɛə /

verb

1. to declare or affirm (a statement) as true, esp by invoking a deity, etc, as witness

2. (foll by by)

   1. to invoke (a deity, etc) by name as a witness or guarantee to an oath

   2. to trust implicitly; have complete confidence (in)

3. to curse, blaspheme, or use swearwords

4. (when tr, may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to promise solemnly on oath; vow

5. (tr) to assert or affirm with great emphasis or earnestness

6. (intr) to give evidence or make any statement or solemn declaration on oath

7. to take an oath in order to add force or solemnity to (a statement or declaration)

8. informal to assert emphatically

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noun

1. a period of swearing

Synonym Usage

See curse.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• swearer
  noun
• reswear
  verb
• swearingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• swears
  plural

Participles

• swearing
  present
• sworn
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• swear
  simple
• swears
  simple
• have sworn
  perfect
• has sworn
  perfect
• am swearing
  progressive
• are swearing
  progressive
• is swearing
  progressive
• have been swearing
  perfect progressive
• has been swearing
  perfect progressive

Past

• sware
  simple
• swore
  simple
• had sworn
  perfect
• was swearing
  progressive
• were swearing
  progressive
• had been swearing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will swear
  simple
• will have sworn
  perfect
• will be swearing
  progressive
• will have been swearing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of swear

First recorded before 900; Middle English sweren, Old English swerian; cognate with German schwören, Old Norse sverja; akin to Gothic swaran “to swear”; see answer

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Explanation

When you take an oath about something, you swear to it, affirming its truth. Ironically, if you utter an oath, such as a curse word or obscenity, you also swear. Do you swear to put a quarter in this jar for every time you swear? The two separate meanings of swear come from branches of the same etymological tree. Both meanings have ties to Old Norse sverja, but sometime in the Middle English, the word became on one hand sweren with the meaning "to promise," while another version, swerian, became "to curse." Both might come from the idea of an oath being connected to a deity, but while one referred to truth, the other went to the dark side, negatively invoking a sacred name.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

swear swears sware swore sworn swearing

“J.D., habibi, there is this delicious irony in the fact that you’re constitutionally obligated to swear me in in January,” he said.

From Slate ● Nov. 4, 2026

Many TikToks users swear that the ideal time to search for flights is 3 a.m. on a Tuesday, for example.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 28, 2026

"She was saying, 'Don't let go'. And I didn't let go of my daughter. I swear, I didn't let her go," Bicer said.

From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026

But some workers swear by mouse docks, like one made by Tech8 USA, that keep cursors moving.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

His mouth is turned down, and I swear I see color in his face.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

He swears by the practice, saying it’s kept his bowel movements regular and his emotional state at an equilibrium.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026

He swears to USA Today that he tries to “make wise decisions and moral decisions.”

From Salon ● Jun. 15, 2026

Watch the actress discuss returning to “The Devil Wears Prada” nearly 20 years later, working with her husband John Krasinski on “A Quiet Place” and the parenting hot take she swears by.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026

Strickland, who is Hilton’s campaign chair, swears that he and his former colleagues didn’t plan to take their crusade statewide, but “when you do a great job, other opportunities present themselves.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2026

It's the music around the words that I hear in my head, even though everyone swears I can't hear it.

From "Brown Girl Dreaming" by Jacqueline Woodson

And they waxed wroth against the High Priestess and said, Didst thou not sware, even unto seven times, that thou wouldst not call a snap election?

From The New Yorker ● Jun. 9, 2017

And I sware to him an oath that it should be as he said.”

From A Maid at King Alfred?s Court by Lucy Foster Madison

Club Houses—Whare the hen-pecked go tew sware, and smooth out their feathers.

From The Complete Works of Josh Billings by Henry W. Shaw

And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan: and Saul sware, "As the Lord liveth, he shall not be put to death."

From Heroes of Israel Text of the Hero Stories with Notes and Questions for Young Students by Theodore Gerald Soares

Sho call’d the Furies to her aid,    An Diræ’s names sho us’d, An sware if I hed spocken t’truth,    Sho hed been sore abus’d.

From Random Rhymes and Rambles by William Aldis Wright

At age 13, I swore off pop, junk food and, most relevant for my nuptials, dessert.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

"Today we renew the sacred oath that we first swore in their names a quarter of a century ago. We will never, ever forget. That's why we fight today," Trump said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026

North Korea demolished the South's liaison office in its territory and later swore off all communication with them.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

Adams swore to the end that he was “one of the most honorable, decent cops I have ever met,” and she had met--and tested--a lot of cops.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

“I wasn’t—” I swore under my breath as the boy pushed his cart over my foot and stepped back to give the brat some room to get through the doors.

From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros

That’s a problem for the outgoing Congress, before the newly elected members are sworn in next year.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

They consist of sworn statements from him, his alleged mother and an alleged family acquaintance attesting to his birth under the surname Chin in the house on Jackson Street.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

The process requires sworn statements and identifying information from prospective voters.

From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026

This is different to a criminal indictment, which must be approved by a grand jury, a group of citizens sworn in to review if evidence is strong enough to prosecute.

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

In support of their claim that Armstrong should, at the very least, be entitled to discovery, Armstrong’s lawyers offered two sworn affidavits.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

The traveler, who was just moments ago swearing off vacation rentals forever, admits that’s exactly the problem: They need a kitchen!

From Salon ● Oct. 28, 2026

Now, the Los Angeles-area resident says he is swearing off the policies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

"It's a very serious issue. It's a virus that's spread through society. Comedy, jokes and films have normalised swearing and it needs to be reined in," he says.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

Kito showed Becerra a picture of the then-congressman swearing him in as a neighborhood council president more than a decade ago.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

Each was swearing quietly to his or her own God.

From "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho

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Related Words

• affirm
• assert
• depose
• testify
• vow

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