swear
Americanverb (used without object)
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swears,
present (3rd person singular)
-
swore,
past
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sware,
past (Archaic)
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sworn,
past participle
-
swearing
present participle
-
to make a solemn declaration or affirmation by some sacred being or object, as a deity or the Bible.
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to bind oneself by oath.
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to give evidence or make a statement on oath.
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to use profane oaths or language.
Don't swear in front of the children.
- Synonyms:
- imprecate
verb (used with object)
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swears,
present (3rd person singular)
-
swore,
past
-
sware,
past (Archaic)
-
sworn,
past participle
-
swearing
present participle
-
to declare, affirm, attest, etc., by swearing by a deity, some sacred object, etc.
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to affirm, assert, or say with solemn earnestness.
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to promise or undertake on oath or in a solemn manner; vow.
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to testify or state on oath.
He swore it on the witness stand.
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to take (an oath), as in order to give solemnity or force to a declaration, promise, etc.
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to bind by an oath.
to swear someone to secrecy.
noun
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swears
plural
verb phrase
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swear by
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to name (a sacred being or thing) as one's witness or guarantee in swearing.
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Informal. to have great confidence in; rely on.
He swears by his dentist.
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to have certain knowledge of.
I thought I saw him leaving, but I couldn't swear by it.
-
-
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?
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swear in to admit to office or service by administering an oath.
A new president will be sworn in today.
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swear out to secure (a warrant for arrest) by making an accusation under oath.
verb
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to declare or affirm (a statement) as true, esp by invoking a deity, etc, as witness
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(foll by by)
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to invoke (a deity, etc) by name as a witness or guarantee to an oath
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to trust implicitly; have complete confidence (in)
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to curse, blaspheme, or use swearwords
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(when tr, may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to promise solemnly on oath; vow
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(tr) to assert or affirm with great emphasis or earnestness
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(intr) to give evidence or make any statement or solemn declaration on oath
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to take an oath in order to add force or solemnity to (a statement or declaration)
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informal to assert emphatically
noun
Synonym Usage
See curse.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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swearsimple
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swearssimple
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have swornperfect
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has swornperfect
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am swearingprogressive
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are swearingprogressive
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is swearingprogressive
-
have been swearingperfect progressive
-
has been swearingperfect progressive
Past
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swaresimple
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sworesimple
-
had swornperfect
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was swearingprogressive
-
were swearingprogressive
-
had been swearingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing swear
The Presidential Oath of Office Vocabulary
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"My Brother's Keeper" and "What Price Loyalty?"
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Declare
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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:
“J.D., habibi, there is this delicious irony in the fact that you’re constitutionally obligated to swear me in in January,” he said.
From Slate ● Nov. 4, 2026
Addressing the vice president, El-Sayed said in his victory speech "you're constitutionally obligated to swear me in in January."
From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026
Make a rule and set an amount, whether it’s $5,000 or $10,000, and solemnly swear that no one moves more than that amount without telling the other.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026
“I solemnly swear allegiance to my Fatherland, the Russian Federation,” read the stocky 17-year-old, decked out in a fresh military uniform with a rifle slung across his shoulder.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
I could swear I caught something like relief in her eyes.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
An NBA player swears it brought him good luck after devouring it the night before a big game.
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026
Vincent swears dogs can be trained to do anything, like open the refrigerator.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
He swears by the practice, saying it’s kept his bowel movements regular and his emotional state at an equilibrium.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
WSJ | Buy Side: Why one editor swears by this detangling, scalp-massaging shower tool.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 24, 2026
The worst thing about it is the sheer emphasis she swears with.
From "I Am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak
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
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
A fly, the dear, little, social innocent, kant make me sware, not even an abreviated dam.
From The Complete Works of Josh Billings by Henry W. Shaw
And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan: and Saul sware, "As the Lord liveth, he shall not be put to death."
From Heroes of Israel Text of the Hero Stories with Notes and Questions for Young Students by Theodore Gerald Soares
Be strong and of a good courage: for thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
From Heroes of Israel Text of the Hero Stories with Notes and Questions for Young Students by Theodore Gerald Soares
"This was passed to me by my nan, she swore by it," she says.
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026
As the company expanded and acquired other small manufacturers, the Gunds swore off layoffs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
Regan told investigators and The Times that he swore at Bartholow but denied that he physically intimidated her.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
"Today we renew the sacred oath that we first swore in their names a quarter of a century ago. We will never, ever forget. That's why we fight today," Trump said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
Rudolf Abel swore this sacred oath in Moscow’s Lubyanka building, headquarters of the Soviet Union’s secret intelligence agency, the KGB.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
In 1920, when he was sworn in as a naturalized citizen, he changed his middle name to Russell and listed his occupation as “assistant manager, motion pictures.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
A judge ordered them to either produce the records or submit the officer’s sworn statement that they did not exist.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
The process requires sworn statements and identifying information from prospective voters.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026
The 10-year Treasury yield has surged 42.4 basis points since the day before Warsh was sworn in as Fed chairman on May 22.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026
His sister had once held it and found her way to Rio Luna like they’d pinky sworn.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
The traveler, who was just moments ago swearing off vacation rentals forever, admits that’s exactly the problem: They need a kitchen!
From Salon ● Oct. 28, 2026
Some social media users are swearing by a way of avoiding ads on Pinterest, WSJ Leadership Institute’s Megan Graham reports.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
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
“Mercy, Maud,” said Mother, which was the closest she ever came to swearing, too.
From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
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