testify

American  

[tes-tuh-fahy] / ˈtɛs təˌfaɪ /

verb (used without object)

testified, testifying

1. to bear witness; give or afford evidence.

2. Law. to give testimony under oath or solemn affirmation, usually in court.

3. to make solemn declaration.

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verb (used with object)

testified, testifying

1. to bear witness to; affirm as fact or truth; attest.

2. to give or afford evidence of in any manner.

   Synonyms:

   prove, signify, show, indicate

3. Law. to state or declare under oath or affirmation, usually in court.

4. to declare, profess, or acknowledge openly.

testify British  

/ ˈtɛstɪˌfaɪ /

verb

1. (when tr, may take a clause as object) to state (something) formally as a declaration of fact

   I testify that I know nothing about him

2. law to declare or give (evidence) under oath, esp in court

3. to be evidence (of); serve as witness (to)

   the money testified to his good faith

4. (tr) to declare or acknowledge openly

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Other Word Forms

• pretestify verb (used with object)
• retestify verb
• testification noun
• testifier noun
• untestifying adjective

Etymology

Origin of testify

1350–1400; Middle English testifyen < Latin testificārī to bear witness, equivalent to testi ( s ) witness + -ficārī -fy

Example Sentences

What many saw was a cautious career prosecutor who was forced to testify under duress and who deflected questions from both Democrats and Republicans by referring repeatedly to his voluminous report.

From Barron's

Last month, tech executives, including Meta’s chief executive and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, testified in a landmark trial in Los Angeles over a lawsuit that alleges social media is addictive and harms children.

From Los Angeles Times

There is no legal mechanism to compel Ferguson to testify in the US.

From BBC

While testifying in court earlier this month, Musk argued that he did not mislead investors and that people simply read too much into his public comments and tweets.

From BBC

Slater relayed the call to Alford and told him it had badly shaken her, her former deputy testified.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• announce
• argue
• assert
• declare
• depose
• indicate
• swear