betroth
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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betrothsimple
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betrothssimple
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have betrothedperfect
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has betrothedperfect
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am betrothingprogressive
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are betrothingprogressive
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is betrothingprogressive
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have been betrothingperfect progressive
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has been betrothingperfect progressive
Past
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betrothedsimple
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had betrothedperfect
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was betrothingprogressive
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were betrothingprogressive
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had been betrothingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of betroth
1275–1325; Middle English betrouthe, variant of betreuthe ( be- be- + treuthe truth; see troth)
Explanation
The verb betroth means to give to in marriage. In the really olden days, your parents might betroth you to someone you barely knew and you'd be expected to marry this virtual stranger. Since arranged marriages are becoming more rare, betroth has taken on the more general meaning of pledging to be married. If your boyfriend says, "Want to get hitched?" and you say, "Excellent idea!" then you are betrothed. Betroth is from the Middle English word betreuthe, which itself is from the roots bi-, meaning "thoroughly," and trowthe, meaning "truth" or "pledge."
Vocabulary lists containing betroth
Novel Study: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Acts 4–5
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Blood Water Paint
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"Duty" by Pamela Rafael Berkman
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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:
Following her death from tuberculosis in 1847, he planned to betroth his first love, Sarah Elmira Royster Shelton, in the same city.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 11, 2022
The most important decisions you make in this game are not military, but about to whom to betroth your children.
From New York Times ● Mar. 30, 2012
Intoned the bride's father: "I betroth to Your Majesty my daughter, Farida."
From Time Magazine Archive
Wilt thou betroth thyself to me in this wise?
From Saronia A Romance of Ancient Ephesus by Short, Richard
If she is what she should be, and what I doubt not she is, our chaplain will betroth you to-day to my sister in the chapel of the castle.
From The Blacksmith's Hammer, or The Peasant Code A Tale of the Grand Monarch by Sue, Eug?ne
Cressida betroths herself to Troilus, a son of Priam, and vows eternal fidelity.
From Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook by Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham
He betroths himself oftener to the devil in one day than Mecaenas did in a week to his wife, that he was married a thousand times to.
From Character Writings of the 17th Century by Various
Before the combat Lohengrin betroths himself to Elsa, naming only the condition that she shall never question him as to his name or race.
From The Standard Operas (12th edition) Their Plots, Their Music, and Their Composers by Upton, George P. (George Putnam)
If a man says to a woman, "Thou art betrothed to me after thirty days," and in the interim another comes and betroths her, she is the second suitor's.
From Hebraic Literature; Translations from the Talmud, Midrashim and Kabbala by Various
From that conjunction it can be seen how love or the will betroths to itself wisdom or the understanding, and afterwards weds it, that is, enters into a kind of marriage with it.
From Angelic Wisdom Concerning the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom by Ager, John
The two formidable women in Cal’s life—Lena, his betrothed, and Trey, his teenage protégée—suspect that Rachel was silenced.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
The masque, performed by gentle spirits, enchants the betrothed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2025
Was he supposed to be betrothed to him forever, and be a mantlepiece for folk music until his death?
From Salon ● Dec. 25, 2024
You’ve surely seen these pictures: The newly betrothed couple walking back down the aisle, the bride and groom graciously taking in their champagne toasts, a few dizzying iPhone videos from a crowded dance floor.
From Slate ● Apr. 13, 2024
She had to wed Joffrey, they were betrothed, he was promised to her, she had even dreamed about it.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
The ancient ceremony of betrothing seems still to have been in full use in Shakespeare’s day.
From Folk-lore of Shakespeare by Thiselton-Dyer, Thomas Firminger
When the time of betrothing is completed, the nuptials ought to take place, n.
From The Delights of Wisdom Pertaining to Conjugial Love by Swedenborg, Emanuel
He made closer his ancient friendship with Guy of Dampierre, the old Count of Flanders, by betrothing Edward of Carnarvon to his daughter Philippine.
From The History of England From the Accession of Henry III. to the Death of Edward III. (1216-1377) by Hunt, William
The young Lords of Douglas came out looking brave and handsome as bridegrooms on a day of betrothing.
From The Black Douglas by Richards, Frank
The wily Menschikof succeeded in betrothing his daughter to the young Emperor, but not in retaining his ascendency over the self-willed boy.
From A Short History of Russia by Parmele, Mary Platt
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.
