vow

American  

[vau] / vaʊ /

noun

• vows
  plural

1. a solemn promise, pledge, or personal commitment.

   marriage vows; a vow of secrecy.

2. a solemn promise made to a deity or saint committing oneself to an act, service, or condition.

3. a solemn or earnest declaration.

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verb (used with object)

• vows,
  present (3rd person singular)
• vowed,
  past participle,  past
• vowing
  present participle

1. to make a vow of; promise by a vow, as to God or a saint.

   to vow a crusade or a pilgrimage.

2. to pledge or resolve solemnly to do, make, give, observe, etc..

   They vowed revenge.

3. to declare solemnly or earnestly; assert emphatically (often followed by a clause as object).

   She vowed that she would take the matter to court.

4. to dedicate or devote by a vow.

   to vow oneself to the service of God.

verb (used without object)

• vows,
  present (3rd person singular)
• vowed,
  past participle,  past
• vowing
  present participle

1. to make a vow.

2. to make a solemn or earnest declaration.

idioms

1. take vows, to enter a religious order or house.

vow British  

/ vaʊ /

noun

1. a solemn or earnest pledge or promise binding the person making it to perform a specified act or behave in a certain way

2. a solemn promise made to a deity or saint, by which the promiser pledges himself to some future act, course of action, or way of life

3. to enter a religious order and commit oneself to its rule of life by the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, which may be taken for a limited period as simple vows or as a perpetual and still more solemn commitment as solemn vows

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verb

1. (tr; may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to pledge, promise, or undertake solemnly

   he vowed that he would continue

   he vowed to return

2. (tr) to dedicate or consecrate to God, a deity, or a saint

3. (tr; usually takes a clause as object) to assert or swear emphatically

4. archaic (intr) to declare solemnly

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• vower
  noun
• unvowed
  adjective
• vowless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• vows
  plural

Participles

• vowing
  present
• vowed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• vow
  simple
• vows
  simple
• have vowed
  perfect
• has vowed
  perfect
• am vowing
  progressive
• are vowing
  progressive
• is vowing
  progressive
• have been vowing
  perfect progressive
• has been vowing
  perfect progressive

Past

• vowed
  simple
• had vowed
  perfect
• was vowing
  progressive
• were vowing
  progressive
• had been vowing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will vow
  simple
• will have vowed
  perfect
• will be vowing
  progressive
• will have been vowing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of vow

1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French vo ( u ) < Latin vōtum, neuter of vōtus, past participle of vovēre to vow

Explanation

To vow is to make an earnest promise or pledge. People getting married often vow to stick together “till death do us part,” while a presidential candidate might vow to lower taxes. You can use vow as both a noun and a verb: A vow is a solemn declaration; to vow is the act of making that promise. Vows are meant to be serious, sacred things, even vows made with the best intentions can be broken. Wrote American short-story writer and poet Dorothy Parker, “By the time you swear you are his, shivering and sighing, And he vows his passion is infinite and undying—Lady, make a note of this: One of you is lying.”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vow vows vowed vowing

Goldenvoice and the city vow to get it right.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

The Daily Express headlines on Burnham's vow to abstain in the assisted dying vote and remain neutral when the bill returns to the Commons.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

Though Derek makes his living as a private investigator, he’s still loyal to the policeman’s vow to protect and to serve.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

"Along with our vow to renounce war, I reaffirmed our determination to continue fulfilling our responsibility to uphold Japan's postwar path as a peaceful nation," he added.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

She brought one gloved finger to her lips, which were scrunched and hard looking and made me vow that when I grew old, I would make sure that I smiled all the time.

From "It All Comes Down to This" by Karen English

But there are others who absolutely believe in City executives Khaldoon Al Mubarak and Ferran Soriano's vows to prove the club's innocence.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

The couple exchanged vows on Friday, May 22, on a private island in the Bahamas.

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026

The insider further revealed that the lovers spent 20 minutes exchanging their handwritten vows, and that they handed out custom handkerchiefs, embroidered with a “TT” and lyrics from Swift’s 2014 song “Blank Space.”

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026

He ended his vows saying: "Your honour shall become my honour, your home shall become my home."

From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026

She calls every two weeks and vows to return to Honduras in a year if she hasn’t been able to bring their daughter north.

From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario

The Dutch government, which hosts the ICC, and other court member states have vowed to defend the institution.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

I still loved him, but our marriage was nothing like the marriage I had vowed to protect.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

Co-organisers Australia and Turkey vowed Thursday to get negotiators to vote on a so-called "presidency-led decision" that they would have prepared before hand.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

He renounced the prosperity gospel he once had preached, wrote a raw and wrenching biography about his missteps and vowed to work with the needy and most vulnerable when he was released.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

I was afraid, but I vowed I would not let them take Ultima.

From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya

Eventually, Switzerland and the United States announced a declaration of intent to cut tariffs to 15 percent, with the Swiss vowing to invest $200 billion in the United States.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

The sudden loss has ripped at the heart of Santa Clarita, with officials already vowing to rebuild.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026

Instead of shedding tears or vowing revenge, we hear the protagonist in the song begging the mistress who holds the power to relinquish it.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

“We cannot accept what they’ve offered, and we will not give what they’ve asked,” Carney told reporters Saturday, vowing to retaliate with dollar-for-dollar tariffs on U.S. goods.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

They had written a statement vowing never to do so, and spit on it at the same time, and buried it somewhere in her parents’ backyard.

From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri

Related Words

• affirm
• assure
• declare
• promise
• swear