espoused

[ih-spouzd, -spousd]

adjective

1. embraced or adopted, as an idea, principle, or cause.

   There was an immediate negative reaction to his clearly espoused beliefs on the subject.

2. Archaic.,  married.

   Once while I was in medical school, my recently espoused wife was persuaded to come and see me do a post-mortem.

3. Archaic.,  engaged or betrothed.

   Espoused couples desiring to be married by the Ministerial Staff are required to complete the six-week preparation course.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of espouse.

Other Word Forms

• unespoused adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of espoused¹

espouse ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Her philosophy, while shocking to a busload of Baptist female college teachers, is one Williams himself might have espoused after a couple of Negronis.

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But Borysenko, whose exclusive coverage of the event immediately preceded Alter’s firing, has herself repeatedly espoused extreme rhetoric on social media, even publicly embracing “fascism” and revisionist histories of Nazi Germany.

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Militant activists who identify with Antifa have espoused an uncompromising philosophy of zero tolerance for fascists.

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Capitol — all violent incidents carried out by people who espoused right-wing political values.

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In addition to appealing to young voters about the economic headwinds they faced as they sought to climb the career ladder and tried to buy a house, Kirk also espoused sharply conservative views.

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Related Words

• marital