troth
Americannoun
-
faithfulness, fidelity, or loyalty.
by my troth.
-
truth or verity.
in troth.
-
one's word or promise, especially in engaging oneself to marry.
noun
-
a pledge or oath of fidelity, esp a betrothal
-
truth (esp in the phrase in troth )
-
loyalty; fidelity
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of troth
1125–75; Middle English trowthe, trouthe, variant of treuthe, Old English trēowth. See truth
Explanation
A troth is a serious promise to be faithful, such as a pledge people make about getting married. If you and your girlfriend announce your troth at a family dinner, then that means you better be serious about your relationship. You can pronounce troth to rhyme with "cloth" or to rhyme with "oath." In fact, oath is a synonym for troth. Both words are related to truth, in that when someone makes a troth or an oath, what is said is taken as the truth. You can see troth in words like betrothal, which means engagement, or betrothed, which refers to a person someone is engaged to.
Vocabulary lists containing troth
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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.
This week, however, she finally pledged her troth.
From New York Times ● Sep. 2, 2021
He jokes and wheedles and begs and tells stories and pledges his troth.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 3, 2019
The coronation scene, in which Elizabeth is anointed and pledges her troth to the nation and God, really moved me, though I’m still a confirmed anti-monarchist.
From Slate ● Dec. 20, 2016
I wonder, by my troth, what thou and IDid, till we loved?
From The Guardian ● Feb. 10, 2012
I told him, when he asked, that I’d never been in trouble with the police— and up to then, that was the troth.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
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.
