vow
Americannoun
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vows
plural
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a solemn promise, pledge, or personal commitment.
marriage vows; a vow of secrecy.
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a solemn promise made to a deity or saint committing oneself to an act, service, or condition.
-
a solemn or earnest declaration.
verb (used with object)
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vows,
present (3rd person singular)
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vowed,
past participle, past
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vowing
present participle
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to make a vow of; promise by a vow, as to God or a saint.
to vow a crusade or a pilgrimage.
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to pledge or resolve solemnly to do, make, give, observe, etc..
They vowed revenge.
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to declare solemnly or earnestly; assert emphatically (often followed by a clause as object).
She vowed that she would take the matter to court.
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to dedicate or devote by a vow.
to vow oneself to the service of God.
verb (used without object)
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vows,
present (3rd person singular)
-
vowed,
past participle, past
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vowing
present participle
-
to make a vow.
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to make a solemn or earnest declaration.
idioms
noun
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a solemn or earnest pledge or promise binding the person making it to perform a specified act or behave in a certain way
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a solemn promise made to a deity or saint, by which the promiser pledges himself to some future act, course of action, or way of life
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to enter a religious order and commit oneself to its rule of life by the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, which may be taken for a limited period as simple vows or as a perpetual and still more solemn commitment as solemn vows
verb
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(tr; may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to pledge, promise, or undertake solemnly
he vowed that he would continue
he vowed to return
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(tr) to dedicate or consecrate to God, a deity, or a saint
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(tr; usually takes a clause as object) to assert or swear emphatically
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archaic (intr) to declare solemnly
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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vowsimple
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vowssimple
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have vowedperfect
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has vowedperfect
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am vowingprogressive
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are vowingprogressive
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is vowingprogressive
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have been vowingperfect progressive
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has been vowingperfect progressive
Past
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vowedsimple
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had vowedperfect
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was vowingprogressive
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were vowingprogressive
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had been vowingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of vow
1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French vo ( u ) < Latin vōtum, neuter of vōtus, past participle of vovēre to vow
Explanation
To vow is to make an earnest promise or pledge. People getting married often vow to stick together “till death do us part,” while a presidential candidate might vow to lower taxes. You can use vow as both a noun and a verb: A vow is a solemn declaration; to vow is the act of making that promise. Vows are meant to be serious, sacred things, even vows made with the best intentions can be broken. Wrote American short-story writer and poet Dorothy Parker, “By the time you swear you are his, shivering and sighing, And he vows his passion is infinite and undying—Lady, make a note of this: One of you is lying.”
Vocabulary lists containing vow
Beowulf vocabulary
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Mardi Gras: Faith
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The Lemonade War
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It said Burnham would vow "to continue the unbreakable bond between the two nations", echoing what the new UK leader told Zelensky in a call last Monday within hours of replacing Keir Starmer.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Delivering on his vow before the rest of the committee forces the issue would show him leading it rather than trailing it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
If you have $35,000 in credit-card debt, not only should you cut up your cards, you should take the pieces and burn them on a pyre and vow never to make this mistake again.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026
Andy Burnham's expected vow to "lift Britain back up" comes with what The i Paper calls the "biggest ever power transfer."
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026
Despite my earlier vow not to hike with the car, I found it rather suited me here—indeed, completely suited me.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
Fifa says "nobody is selling football" and vows to continue with the plan.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
The ceremony, per tabloid reporting, was interminable, with both bride and groom delivering a 20-minute set of vows.
From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2026
He described the vows as "long, entertaining, personal, charming, emotional, irreverent and endearing explorations by each" about how they met and why they wanted to be married.
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
At a university famous for its role in left-wing activism during the 1960s free speech movement and anti-Vietnam War protests, Pelosi vows to promote a nonpartisan academic endeavor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
Adams, however, despite all his vows of Ciceronian serenity, was congenitally incapable of staying in character.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
El-Sayed vowed to unite Democrats around defeating Rogers, who previously served seven terms in Congress, saying that he and Stevens would be focused on “bringing the party back together.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
He was quoted by local media as saying that "almost all of these issues stem from the use of mobile phones and social media", and vowed to look into stricter measures.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
Despite the dismissal, Burgum vowed that the administration “won’t back down to deranged people who want to destroy, deface, or degrade our monuments.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
A top British court on Friday threw out a challenge against planning permission for a Chinese "mega" embassy in central London, but residents seeking to block the contentious project vowed to fight on.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
He’d vowed to get her out, and this was his chance.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
While preparing for the country’s planned celebration of its 250th birthday, Trump decided to do a little housecleaning and update the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, vowing to make it better than ever.
From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2026
Peru's conservative President Keiko Fujimori took office on Tuesday, vowing to tackle the wave of crime sweeping the Andean nation.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
Paramount insists viewers will benefit, vowing to release 30 films in cinemas every year – doubling its current turnout.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
When Dornan ran again in 1998, with volunteers vowing to pursue any election irregularities, Sanchez walloped him, and he was swept into the dustbin of political history.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
A bitter Jackson set off for the White House, believing that the vicious attacks on his wife had caused her death and vowing revenge on his political opponents.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
