swear

American  

[swair] / swɛər /

verb (used without object)

• swears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• swore,
  past
• sware,
  past (Archaic)
• sworn,
  past participle
• swearing
  present participle

1. to make a solemn declaration or affirmation by some sacred being or object, as a deity or the Bible.

   Synonyms:

   avow, affirm, declare

2. to bind oneself by oath.

3. to give evidence or make a statement on oath.

   Synonyms:

   testify, depose

4. to use profane oaths or language.

   Don't swear in front of the children.

   Synonyms:

   imprecate

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verb (used with object)

• swears,
  present (3rd person singular)
• swore,
  past
• sware,
  past (Archaic)
• sworn,
  past participle
• swearing
  present participle

1. to declare, affirm, attest, etc., by swearing by a deity, some sacred object, etc.

2. to affirm, assert, or say with solemn earnestness.

3. to promise or undertake on oath or in a solemn manner; vow.

4. to testify or state on oath.

   He swore it on the witness stand.

5. to take (an oath), as in order to give solemnity or force to a declaration, promise, etc.

6. to bind by an oath.

   to swear someone to secrecy.

noun

• swears
  plural

1. Informal. a profane or obscene word; curse word.

   If we said a swear, Mom made us put a quarter in the jar.

   Heads-up—this movie trailer is full of swears and is NSFW.

verb phrase

1. swear by

   1. to name (a sacred being or thing) as one's witness or guarantee in swearing.

   2. Informal. to have great confidence in; rely on.

      He swears by his dentist.

   3. to have certain knowledge of.

      I thought I saw him leaving, but I couldn't swear by it.

2. swear off to promise or resolve to give up something.

   I've decided to swear off the internet one day a week.

   Have you sworn off red meat?

3. swear in to admit to office or service by administering an oath.

   A new president will be sworn in today.

4. swear out to secure (a warrant for arrest) by making an accusation under oath.

swear British  

/ swɛə /

verb

1. to declare or affirm (a statement) as true, esp by invoking a deity, etc, as witness

2. (foll by by)

   1. to invoke (a deity, etc) by name as a witness or guarantee to an oath

   2. to trust implicitly; have complete confidence (in)

3. to curse, blaspheme, or use swearwords

4. (when tr, may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to promise solemnly on oath; vow

5. (tr) to assert or affirm with great emphasis or earnestness

6. (intr) to give evidence or make any statement or solemn declaration on oath

7. to take an oath in order to add force or solemnity to (a statement or declaration)

8. informal to assert emphatically

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noun

1. a period of swearing

Synonym Usage

See curse.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• swearer
  noun
• reswear
  verb
• swearingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• swears
  plural

Participles

• swearing
  present
• sworn
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• swear
  simple
• swears
  simple
• have sworn
  perfect
• has sworn
  perfect
• am swearing
  progressive
• are swearing
  progressive
• is swearing
  progressive
• have been swearing
  perfect progressive
• has been swearing
  perfect progressive

Past

• sware
  simple
• swore
  simple
• had sworn
  perfect
• was swearing
  progressive
• were swearing
  progressive
• had been swearing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will swear
  simple
• will have sworn
  perfect
• will be swearing
  progressive
• will have been swearing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of swear

First recorded before 900; Middle English sweren, Old English swerian; cognate with German schwören, Old Norse sverja; akin to Gothic swaran “to swear”; see answer

Explanation

When you take an oath about something, you swear to it, affirming its truth. Ironically, if you utter an oath, such as a curse word or obscenity, you also swear. Do you swear to put a quarter in this jar for every time you swear? The two separate meanings of swear come from branches of the same etymological tree. Both meanings have ties to Old Norse sverja, but sometime in the Middle English, the word became on one hand sweren with the meaning "to promise," while another version, swerian, became "to curse." Both might come from the idea of an oath being connected to a deity, but while one referred to truth, the other went to the dark side, negatively invoking a sacred name.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

swear swears sware swore sworn swearing

Walker added Cricket was well-known for "keeping his act clean" in a time where some of the clubs would not have allowed any type of crude language or swear words.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

To start things off, here are three personal-finance principles that I’ve come to swear by through my own wins and losses.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026

"I swear ... that I will faithfully carry out the duties of president of the republic," Peru's ninth president in a decade stated before Congress.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

Adherents swear by cupping therapy as a way to manage muscle pain and detoxify, but more spas are touting it as the ideal postflight treatment.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026

I swear I could feel it before I looked up and saw it.

From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones

“Oh, I have a friend who does that,” “Oh, my cousin swears by it,” I began hearing from people as soon as I started looking for interviewees.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026

He swears to USA Today that he tries to “make wise decisions and moral decisions.”

From Salon ● Jun. 15, 2026

When the next president swears an oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” he undertakes both to obey the Constitution and to remove threats to it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026

He's also invested in an AI-powered electrical bed cover that cools down or heats up based on your body temperature, that he swears by for improving sleep.

From BBC ● Mar. 5, 2026

Another woman swears that her numbers not only have color, but also have personalities.

From "A Mango-Shaped Space" by Wendy Mass

And they waxed wroth against the High Priestess and said, Didst thou not sware, even unto seven times, that thou wouldst not call a snap election?

From The New Yorker ● Jun. 9, 2017

Remember what God has said, 'the Lord thy God is a merciful God, He will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.'

From Lily Pearl and The Mistress of Rosedale by Ida Glenwood

Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

From The Expositor's Bible: The Book of Genesis by Marcus Dods

As likewise in contracts and mutual compacts of friendship, or stricter association, when edification, or other satisfaction, or security calls for it, as Jacob sware to Laban, David to Jonathan, &c.

From A Hind Let Loose Or, An Historical Representation of the Testimonies of the Church of Scotland for the Interest of Christ. With the True State Thereof in All Its Periods by Alexander Shields

Is love, that thou sware to me aye and so often, To live too feeble or—how?—doth it soften And weaken away and—to die?—why die?—

From Accolon of Gaul with Other Poems by Madison Julius Cawein

For her part, Korte wrote on X: "It's a shame for the institution and service members, who swore to defend the Constitution and deserve the right to a free and independent press."

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

Adams swore to the end that he was “one of the most honorable, decent cops I have ever met,” and she had met--and tested--a lot of cops.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Charles Franklin and Janette Edwards, retirees from California, swore off Greece in the height of summer after a particularly sweltering, crowded trip to Athens a few years ago.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

Platner, in damage-control mode, acknowledged that he was occasionally a lousy boyfriend but denied any sort of physical abuse, swore that he has cleaned up his act, and pledged that no more skeletons will emerge.

From Slate ● Jun. 6, 2026

This most famous of American writers swore that not a mortal soul in the room knew the story previously.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

I haven’t sworn off delivery, nor do I particularly want to.

From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026

“I was taken to Ventura County Medical Center because of the severity of the wound and blood loss,” Ziegenfus’ sworn statement read.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

On Saturday, just a day after the was sworn into office, two explosive devices went off.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

President Abelardo de la Esperiella, sworn into the job just three days ago, declared a state of emergency and vowed that Colombia would "move forward together."

From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026

All the early English colonizers of North America, including those who came for religious reasons, had sworn loyalty to the king of England.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

Kito showed Becerra a picture of the then-congressman swearing him in as a neighborhood council president more than a decade ago.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

The decision by Wetherspoons follows a stricter, longstanding policy from rival pub chain Sam Smiths which bans no phone or tech use of any kind, in addition to a ban on swearing.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

He whined that the singers who pulled out of the state fair are “Third Rate” and promised he would simply headline the event, swearing he is greater than Elvis, even “without a guitar.”

From Salon ● Jun. 3, 2026

Branding himself "The Tiger," the candidate has a penchant for swearing and is known for his hot temper.

From Barron's ● May 25, 2026

"You keep swearing you'll pay what you owe me, and I've yet to see a copper."

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin

Related Words

• affirm
• assert
• depose
• testify
• vow