declare

American  

[dih-klair] / dɪˈklɛər /

verb (used with object)

• declares,
  present (3rd person singular)
• declared,
  past participle,  past
• declaring
  present participle

1. 

   to make known or state clearly, especially in explicit or formal terms.

   to declare one's position in a controversy.

2. to announce officially; proclaim.

   to declare a state of emergency; to declare a winner.

3. to state emphatically.

   He declared that the allegation was a lie.

   Synonyms:

   state, asseverate, aver

   Antonyms:

   deny

4. to manifest; reveal; show.

   Her attendance at the rally declared her political allegiance.

   Synonyms:

   publish, disclose

5. to make due statement of, especially goods for duty or income for taxation.

6. to make (a dividend) payable.

7. Bridge. to bid (a trump suit or no-trump).

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verb (used without object)

• declares,
  present (3rd person singular)
• declared,
  past participle,  past
• declaring
  present participle

1. to make a declaration.

2. to proclaim oneself (usually followed by for oragainst ).

   He declared against the proposal.

3. Cricket. (of a team) to surrender a turn at bat in an innings before ten players are put out.

declare British  

/ dɪˈklɛə /

verb

1. (may take a clause as object) to make clearly known or announce officially

   to declare one's interests

   war was declared

2. to state officially that (a person, fact, etc) is as specified

   he declared him fit

3. (may take a clause as object) to state emphatically; assert

4. to show, reveal, or manifest

   the heavens declare the glory of God

5. (intr; often foll by for or against) to make known one's choice or opinion

6. to make a complete statement of (dutiable goods, etc)

7. (also intr) cards

   1. to display (a card or series of ards) on the table so as to add to one's score

   2. to decide (the trump suit) by making the final bid

8. (intr) cricket to close an innings voluntarily before all ten wickets have fallen

9. to authorize the payment of (a dividend) from corporate net profit

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Synonym Usage

Declare, affirm, assert, protest imply making something known emphatically, openly, or formally. To declare is to make known, sometimes in the face of actual or potential contradiction: to declare someone the winner of a contest. To affirm is to make a statement based on one's reputation for knowledge or veracity, or so related to a generally recognized truth that denial is not likely: to affirm the necessity of high standards. To assert is to state boldly, usually without other proof than personal authority or conviction: to assert that the climate is changing. To protest is to affirm publicly, as if in the face of doubt: to protest that a newspaper account is misleading.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• misdeclare
  verb
• predeclare
  verb (used with object)
• redeclare
  verb (used with object)
• declarable
  adjective
• undeclarable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• declaring
  present
• declared
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• declare
  simple
• declares
  simple
• have declared
  perfect
• has declared
  perfect
• am declaring
  progressive
• are declaring
  progressive
• is declaring
  progressive
• have been declaring
  perfect progressive
• has been declaring
  perfect progressive

Past

• declared
  simple
• had declared
  perfect
• was declaring
  progressive
• were declaring
  progressive
• had been declaring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will declare
  simple
• will have declared
  perfect
• will be declaring
  progressive
• will have been declaring
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of declare

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English declaren, from Latin dēclārāre “to announce, make evident, reveal,” from dē- de- + clārāre “to make clear” (from clārus clear )

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Explanation

If you declare victory, you are ending a war by saying you have won. Hopefully, the other side agrees, or your troops might declare you a fool. To declare is to state clearly and officially. In elections, the government body that counts the votes declares the winner. Until the declaration is made, the results are not official. When you are traveling, you might be asked if you have anything to declare. You're not being asked for a statement of your beliefs, rather they want to know if you bought anything taxable abroad. If you hear your grandmother say, "Well, I declare!" you can be sure she is shocked and offended.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

declare declares declared declaring

He plans to declare a housing emergency and speed up construction.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026

The group is demanding that the government declare a national emergency to unlock more resources to fight wildfires across the vast archipelago.

From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2026

This is not out of character; his habit is to prematurely declare victory in everything, apparently assuming that the force of his declaration makes it a reality.

From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2026

The group had no official leaders or formal structure, allowing anyone to declare themselves a member.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026

It is this that underlies his decision to declare war on ‘false rumour and the opinions of some, based on unreliable and untrustworthy foundations’.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

"The constitution says that Congress declares war," he said, and lawmakers should "haul these folks in" to answer questions.

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

“I don’t believe in anything anymore,” Klaus, who is also a writer, declares.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

It declares an El Nino when temperatures there run at least 0.5C above normal and the atmosphere responds, weakening the trade winds and shifting tropical rainfall eastward.

From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026

So declares the Cato Institute’s Scott Lincicome upon rolling out a new dashboard showing that, since June last year, the U.S. has taken equity stakes in 35 companies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

“My brother, the genius,” Susie declares, this time without sarcasm.

From "Before We Were Free" by Julia Alvarez

The Associated Press declared Becerra the winner at 8 p.m.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026

"He is not currently a declared suspect on any unsolved case, but the potential for his involvement is always considered as we review cold cases," the police added.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

“The Who By Numbers” was released in 1975, but this is still being declared a 50th anniversary artifact.

From Salon ● Nov. 3, 2026

Thousands of people travelled from Europe to join IS during the war in Syria, where it declared a caliphate in 2014.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

France, like Russia, rejected the German ultimatum and declared a general mobilization.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman

Tuesday, Luna said he was “very, very humbled” by the strong support for his candidacy, but that he was holding off on declaring victory as votes were still being counted.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026

Several Moroccan users have shared AI-generated images of themselves in military uniform, declaring their readiness to fight for Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

Visit Norway, the Scandinavian country’s tourism agency, responded to Trump’s insult with a cheeky campaign celebrating its spectacular public restrooms, declaring that Norway makes “shithouses great again.”

From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026

Trump, however, was not entirely sour on Brazil's leftist president, declaring, "I like Lula, I get along with him very well."

From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026

The World Health Organization has enlisted the aid of some 300 scientists in all parts of the world, declaring that “resistance is at present the most important single problem facing vector-control programmes.”

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

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Related Words

• acknowledge
• advocate
• affirm
• announce
• argue
• assert
• claim
• confirm
• disclose
• inform
• insist
• maintain
• proclaim
• reaffirm
• repeat
• reveal
• stress
• tell

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