an agreement or promise, usually formal, between two or more people or groups to do or not do something specified.
Law. a secondary clause in a legal contract.
Ecclesiastical. a solemn agreement between the members of a Christian church to act together in harmony with the precepts of the gospel.
History/Historical. Covenant,
Bible.
any of the promises made by God at different times, such as those made to Noah, Abraham, or David and their descendants, or the new covenant inaugurated by Christ.
the agreement between God and the ancient Israelites, in which God promised to bless and protect them if they faithfully kept the law God gave them.
Law.
a formal agreement of legal validity, especially one under seal.
an early English form of lawsuit involving sealed contracts.
to agree or promise, as in a contract or covenant; pledge (usually followed byto ).
In our marriage vows, we covenanted to take care of each other in all circumstances.
to stipulate or specify in a contract.
The covenanted price has been paid.
a binding agreement; contract
law
an agreement in writing under seal, as to pay a stated annual sum to a charity
a particular clause in such an agreement, esp in a lease
(in early English law) an action in which damages were sought for breach of a sealed agreement
Bible God's promise to the Israelites and their commitment to worship him alone
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Old French, noun use of convenant, covenant “agreeing, fitting,” present participle of convenir, covenir “to agree, meet, suit,” from Latin convenīre “to be suitable, come together”; see convene
A covenant is an agreement between two people, or companies, or even countries. It is formal, solemn, sometimes even sacred. There are some places where you'll hear covenant get used. It's a little old fashioned and formal, but marriage is often referred to as a covenant. The most famous covenant appears in the Bible — God tells a shepherd named Abraham to follow God's instructions in exchange for making Abraham's descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky.
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Correspondence shows the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust also appeared to have concerns about how the money was being spent.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
Chengdu's Early Rain Covenant Church said this week on its Telegram channel that nine of its members, including senior leaders, had been detained in a "concerted operation", with two others unaccounted for.
From Barron's • Jan. 9, 2026
The Chinese government has also targeted the Early Rain Covenant Church, founded in 2008, for years.
From BBC • Jan. 8, 2026
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is one such treaty to which the United States is a party.
From Salon • Sep. 7, 2025
It crops up in the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant books.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
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.
