avouch
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make frank acknowledgment or affirmation of; declare or assert with positiveness.
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to assume responsibility for; vouch for; guarantee.
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to admit; confess.
verb
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to vouch for; guarantee
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to acknowledge
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to assert
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of avouch
1350–1400; Middle English avouchen < Middle French avouchier < Latin advocāre. See a- 5, vouch, advocate
Explanation
When you avouch, you assert that something is true. An accused man might be acquitted if several eyewitnesses avouch that he was nowhere near the scene of the crime. Avouch is an extremely old-fashioned way to say another (only slightly old-fashioned) word, avow. Use either word to mean "assert" or "declare." While it's unusual to hear people use avouch, it's common to say something like, "I'll vouch for my friend," meaning you'll give evidence or make a guarantee on your friend's behalf. The root of avouch is the Latin advocare, "call to as a witness."
Vocabulary lists containing avouch
"The Tragedy of Macbeth," Vocabulary from Act 3
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"The Tragedy of Hamlet," Vocabulary from Act 1
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Measure for Measure
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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.
Before my God, I might not this believe, without the sensible and true avouch of mine own eyes.
From Textbooks ● Mar. 27, 2020
"Was my avouch given to her for the truth of the fact."
From Horse-Shoe Robinson A Tale of the Tory Ascendency by John Pendleton Kennedy
None the less they must avouch It pained them much to see a cavalier Turned carrier; and, at once, they must insist On easing him of that too sordid care.
From Collected Poems Volume One by Alfred Noyes
For every averment they had "the sensible and true avouch of their own eyes" and ears.
From The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 6 (of 12) Dresden Edition?Discussions by Robert Green Ingersoll
And now, amiable and considerate reader, you have "ab imo pectore" my honest avouch for what I propose to lay before you, and a plain confession of my weaknesses.
From Quodlibet by John Pendleton Kennedy
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
