forswear
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to reject or renounce under oath.
to forswear an injurious habit.
- Synonyms:
- abandon, forsake, forgo, relinquish, abjure
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to deny vehemently or under oath.
-
to perjure (oneself ).
verb (used without object)
verb
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(tr) to reject or renounce with determination or as upon oath
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(tr) to deny or disavow absolutely or upon oath
he forswore any knowledge of the crime
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to perjure (oneself)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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forswearsimple
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forswearssimple
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have forswornperfect
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has forswornperfect
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am forswearingprogressive
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are forswearingprogressive
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is forswearingprogressive
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have been forswearingperfect progressive
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has been forswearingperfect progressive
Past
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forsworesimple
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had forswornperfect
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was forswearingprogressive
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were forswearingprogressive
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had been forswearingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of forswear
First recorded before 900; Middle English forsweren, Old English forswerian; see origin at for-, swear
Explanation
To forswear is to give up an idea, belief, or habit that you’ve had previously. New Year’s is a popular time to forswear anything from sweets to bad relationships. When you forswear, you abandon something completely. In Romeo and Juliet, Romeo is at first smitten by the maiden Rosaline, but once he lays eyes on Juliet, Rosaline is history. He says of Juliet, “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight, for I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.”
Vocabulary lists containing forswear
Romeo and Juliet
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"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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Othello
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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.
It was like getting the vicar to swear.
From BBC • May 8, 2026
"It's a great contrast. The white, with the black," Trump told reporters as he showed them the ongoing work after a ceremony to swear in new the Homeland Security secretary, Markwayne Mullin.
From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026
The judges cite the government for its tendency to swear at reality in its defenses and the fundamental lawlessness of the behavior they are trying to block.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2026
Your job as speaker is to swear people in, regardless of party, regardless of whether you like what we’re going to do when we’re in office.
From Slate • Nov. 4, 2025
I want you to swear, by return owl, that you are not going to go walking with anyone else at night.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
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.
