Advertisement
Advertisement
vow
[ vou ]
noun
- a solemn promise, pledge, or personal commitment:
marriage vows; a vow of secrecy.
- a solemn promise made to a deity or saint committing oneself to an act, service, or condition.
- a solemn or earnest declaration.
verb (used with object)
- to make a vow of; promise by a vow, as to God or a saint:
to vow a crusade or a pilgrimage.
- to pledge or resolve solemnly to do, make, give, observe, etc.:
They vowed revenge.
- to declare solemnly or earnestly; assert emphatically (often followed by a clause as object):
She vowed that she would take the matter to court.
- to dedicate or devote by a vow:
to vow oneself to the service of God.
verb (used without object)
- to make a vow.
- to make a solemn or earnest declaration.
vow
/ vaʊ /
noun
- a solemn or earnest pledge or promise binding the person making it to perform a specified act or behave in a certain way
- 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
- take vowsto 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
verb
- tr; may take a clause as object or an infinitive to pledge, promise, or undertake solemnly
he vowed to return
he vowed that he would continue
- tr to dedicate or consecrate to God, a deity, or a saint
- tr; usually takes a clause as object to assert or swear emphatically
- archaic.intr to declare solemnly
Derived Forms
- ˈvowless, adjective
- ˈvower, noun
Other Words From
- vower noun
- vowless adjective
- un·vowed adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of vow1
Word History and Origins
Origin of vow1
Idioms and Phrases
- take vows, to enter a religious order or house.
Example Sentences
After just a month in Morris, I dropped out of school to move back home with my parents, vowing that I’d be out in a year to start college in New York City.
Trump vowed to end military support for Ukraine while on the campaign trail.
The country is the latest to join a list that Trump has vowed to tariff when he takes office on Jan. 20 if his demands aren't met.
Reassured, the woman went through the ceremony where she and her partner exchanged wedding vows and kissed in front of a camera.
For example, Trump vowed during the presidential campaign to deny Newsom federal money to fight wildfires unless the governor diverted more water to farms.
Advertisement
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.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Browse