pledge

American  

[plej] / plɛdʒ /

noun

• pledges
  plural

1. a solemn promise or agreement to do or refrain from doing something.

   a pledge of aid;

   a pledge not to wage war.

2. something delivered as security for the payment of a debt or fulfillment of a promise, and subject to forfeiture on failure to pay or fulfill the promise.

   Synonyms:

   guaranty, surety, warranty

3. the state of being given or held as security.

   to put a thing in pledge.

4. Law.

   1. the act of delivering goods, property, etc., to another for security.

   2. the resulting legal relationship.

5. something given or regarded as a security.

6. a person accepted for membership in a club, fraternity, or sorority, but not yet formally approved.

7. an assurance of support or goodwill conveyed by drinking a person's health; a toast.

8. Obsolete.

   1. a hostage.

   2. a person who becomes bail or surety for another.

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verb (used with object)

• pledges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pledged,
  past participle,  past
• pledging
  present participle

1. to bind by or as if by a pledge.

   to pledge hearers to secrecy.

2. to promise solemnly.

   to pledge one's support.

3. to give or deposit as a pledge; pawn.

4. to stake, as one's honor.

5. to secure by a pledge; give a pledge for.

6. to accept as a pledge for club, fraternity, or sorority membership.

7. to drink a health or toast to.

verb (used without object)

• pledges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pledged,
  past participle,  past
• pledging
  present participle

1. to make or give a pledge.

   to pledge for someone.

2. to drink a pledge; toast someone's health, success, etc.

idioms

1. take the pledge, to make a solemn, formal vow to abstain from intoxicating drink.

pledge British  

/ plɛdʒ /

noun

1. a formal or solemn promise or agreement, esp to do or refrain from doing something

2. 1. collateral for the payment of a debt or the performance of an obligation

   2. the condition of being collateral (esp in the phrase in pledge )

3. a sign, token, or indication

   the gift is a pledge of their sincerity

4. an assurance of support or goodwill, conveyed by drinking to a person, cause, etc; toast

   we drank a pledge to their success

5. a person who binds himself, as by becoming bail or surety for another

6. to make a vow to abstain from alcoholic drink

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verb

1. to promise formally or solemnly

   he pledged allegiance

2. (tr) to bind or secure by or as if by a pledge

   they were pledged to secrecy

3. to give, deposit, or offer (one's word, freedom, property, etc) as a guarantee, as for the repayment of a loan

4. to drink a toast to (a person, cause, etc)

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pledger
  noun
• quasi-pledge
  verb
• interpledge
  verb (used with object)
• prepledge
  verb (used with object)
• repledge
  verb (used with object)
• pledgable
  adjective
• pledgeable
  adjective
• pledgeless
  adjective
• unpledged
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pledges
  plural

Participles

• pledging
  present
• pledged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• pledge
  simple
• pledges
  simple
• have pledged
  perfect
• has pledged
  perfect
• am pledging
  progressive
• are pledging
  progressive
• is pledging
  progressive
• have been pledging
  perfect progressive
• has been pledging
  perfect progressive

Past

• pledged
  simple
• had pledged
  perfect
• was pledging
  progressive
• were pledging
  progressive
• had been pledging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will pledge
  simple
• will have pledged
  perfect
• will be pledging
  progressive
• will have been pledging
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of pledge

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English plege, from Anglo-French, from early Medieval Latin plebium, plevium, noun derivative of plebīre “to pledge,” from Germanic; compare Old English plēon “to risk,” German pflegen “to look after”; cf. plight ²

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Explanation

A pledge is basically very serious formal promise. You can pledge allegiance to your country, you can pledge to keep a secret, and you can pledge a sum of money to a cause. Pledge can be used as both a noun and a verb. As a noun, it can be a solemn promise you've made. Or even the person who makes that promise, like the freshman pledges who take an oath to join a fraternity in college. As a verb, it describes the act of promising. “I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a new deal for the American people,” vowed Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pledge pledges pledged pledging

Consecutive quarters of strong earnings have prompted SK Hynix to pledge to return more than 50% of its cumulative free cash flow to shareholders over the three years through 2027.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026

Abdullah cited GSK’s decision to move some drug candidates straight from early-stage to late-stage studies, and to run several pivotal trials for the same medicine simultaneously as practical applications of that pledge.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026

But it’s not a pledge if it’s not a pledge.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026

The chancellor will also pledge millions of pounds in spending across a range of initiatives aimed at shoring up the UK's ability to respond to evolving cyber, biological and AI-enabled threats.

From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026

With Yuko and a handful of other women from the mosque present, she pronounced the shahadah, the Islamic pledge of conviction of faith.

From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers

In which case, they are not pledges, they are mere statements of intent.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026

Nearly 200 nations joined a historic call at that summit to halt and reverse the destruction of nature by 2030, but governments have been slow to act on these pledges.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026

Plus: Persian Gulf oil exports exceed prewar levels, and Trump pledges an $8 billion bailout for farmers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

Counting earlier pledges by its founders and employees, Anthropic said about a fifth of its stock will be directed to public benefit, with more possible if it hits valuation targets.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026

Luckily, I never had to do what my fellow pledges did.

From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers

Writing in The Guardian, he pledged to have "difficult conversations" to safeguard the Commonwealth's future, offering a "structured dialogue with those affected".

From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2026

It has now been announced they have taken out a "low-interest loan to bridge the short-term funding gap between pledged monies still to be received and the fundraising target, ensuring completion of the entire estate".

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026

Audi cut its full-year guidance and pledged to intensify efficiency measures as market conditions worsen.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Agencies have pledged $2.9 billion under the program, and much of the funds will go toward restoring aquatic habitat for fish, officials said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

The San Piedro Review printed a reminder to its readers that it was pledged to remain silent on military news that might comfort or aid the enemy.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

The energy ministry subsequently said the sub-par petrol had reached markets due to an "operational error", pledging accountability and compensation for affected motorists.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

Remedies Cornell eventually introduced included banning freshmen from attending Greek parties during their first semester and shortening the pledging period from eight weeks to four to reduce opportunities for hazing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Investment in the industry has surged, with US tech giants including Google, Amazon and Meta pledging to pour more than $650bn into AI projects this year.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

With voter anxiety growing, the heads of major AI companies signed a White House accord on September 29 pledging independent audits and board-level oversight of cutting-edge models.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

Were they pledging their undying loyalty to me?

From "Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat" by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

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Related Words

• agreement
• assurance
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