Definitions for promise
ˈprɒm ɪsprom·ise

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:2.7 / 6 votes

1. promisenoun

   a verbal commitment by one person to another agreeing to do (or not to do) something in the future

2. promise, hopeverb

   grounds for feeling hopeful about the future

   "there is little or no promise that he will recover"

3. promise, assureverb

   make a promise or commitment

4. promiseverb

   promise to undertake or give

   "I promise you my best effort"

5. predict, foretell, prognosticate, call, forebode, anticipate, promiseverb

   make a prediction about; tell in advance

   "Call the outcome of an election"

6. promiseverb

   give grounds for expectations

   "The new results were promising"; "The results promised fame and glory"

WiktionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 3 votes

1. promisenoun

   An oath or affirmation; a vow.

2. promisenoun

   A transaction between two persons whereby the first person undertakes in the future to render some service or gift to the second person or devotes something valuable now and here to his use.

3. promiseverb

   to commit to something or action; to make an oath; make a vow.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. PROMISEnoun

   Etymology: promissum, Lat. promise, promesse, Fr.

   1. Declaration of some benefit to be confered.

   I eat the air, promise cramm’d; you cannot feed capons so. Sha.

   His promises were, as he then was, mighty;
   But his performance, as he now is, nothing. William Shakespeare.

   O Lord, let thy promise unto David be established. 1 Chron.

   Behold, she said, perform’d in ev’ry part
   My promise made; and Vulcan’s labour’d art. Dryden.

   Let any man consider, how many sorrows he would have escaped, had God called him to his rest, and then say, whether the promise to deliver the just from the evils to come, ought not to be made our daily prayer. William Wake.

   2. Performance of promise; grant of the thing promised.

   Now are they ready, looking for a promise from thee. Acts.

   3. Hopes; expectation.

   Your young prince Mamillius is a gentleman of the greatest promise. William Shakespeare, Winter’s Tale.

2. To Promiseverb

   Etymology: promettre, Fr. promitto, Lat.

   1. To make declaration of some benefit to be confered.

   While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption. 2 Peter ii. 18.

   I could not expect such an effect as I found, which seldom reaches to the degree that is promised by the prescribers of any remedies. William Temple, Miscel.

3. To Promiseverb

   1. To assure one by a promise.

   Promising is the very air o’ th’ time; it opens the eyes of expectation: performance is ever the duller for his act. William Shakespeare.

   I dare promise for this play, that in the roughness of the numbers, which was so designed, you will see somewhat more masterly than any of my former tragedies. Dryden.

   As he promised in the law, he will shortly have mercy, and gather us together. 2 Mac. ii. 18.

   All the pleasure we can take, when we met these promising sparks, is in the disappointment. Henry Felton.

   She brib’d my stay, with more than human charms;
   Nay promis’d, vainly promis’d to bestow
   Immortal life. Alexander Pope, Odyssey.

   2. It is used of assurance, even of ill.

   Will not the ladies be afraid of the lion?
   —— I fear it, I promise you. William Shakespeare.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Promise

   A promise is a commitment by someone to do or not do something. As a noun promise means a declaration assuring that one will or will not do something. As a verb it means to commit oneself by a promise to do or give. It can also mean a capacity for good, similar to a value that is to be realized in the near future.In the law of contract, an exchange of promises is usually held to be legally enforceable, according to the Latin maxim pacta sunt servanda.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. promise

   A promise can be defined as a commitment or assurance made by one party to another, typically stating that a certain action will or will not be taken in the future. It is a declaration of intent to fulfill a specific obligation or to achieve a certain outcome, often involving trust and reliance between the parties involved. Promises are commonly made in various personal, professional, and legal contexts, and are based on the expectation that they will be honored and upheld.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:3.0 / 3 votes

1. Promiseadjective

   in general, a declaration, written or verbal, made by one person to another, which binds the person who makes it to do, or to forbear to do, a specified act; a declaration which gives to the person to whom it is made a right to expect or to claim the performance or forbearance of a specified act

2. Promiseadjective

   an engagement by one person to another, either in words or in writing, but properly not under seal, for the performance or nonperformance of some particular thing. The word promise is used to denote the mere engagement of a person, without regard to the consideration for it, or the corresponding duty of the party to whom it is made

3. Promiseadjective

   that which causes hope, expectation, or assurance; especially, that which affords expectation of future distinction; as, a youth of great promise

4. Promiseadjective

   bestowal, fulfillment, or grant of what is promised

5. Promiseverb

   to engage to do, give, make, or to refrain from doing, giving, or making, or the like; to covenant; to engage; as, to promise a visit; to promise a cessation of hostilities; to promise the payment of money

6. Promiseverb

   to afford reason to expect; to cause hope or assurance of; as, the clouds promise rain

7. Promiseverb

   to make declaration of or give assurance of, as some benefit to be conferred; to pledge or engage to bestow; as, the proprietors promised large tracts of land; the city promised a reward

8. Promiseverb

   to give assurance by a promise, or binding declaration

9. Promiseverb

   to afford hopes or expectation; to give ground to expect good; rarely, to give reason to expect evil

10. Etymology: [F. promesse, L. promissum, fr. promittere, promissum, to put forth, foretell, promise; pro forward, for + mittere to send. See Mission. ]

WikidataRate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. Promise

   A promise is a commitment by someone to do or not do something. As a noun promise means a declaration assuring that one will or will not do something. As a verb it means to commit oneself by a promise to do or give. It can also mean a capacity for good, similar to a value that is to be realized in the near future. In the law of contract, an exchange of promises is usually held to be legally enforceable, according to the Latin maxim pacta sunt servanda.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Promise

   prom′is, n. an engagement made by a person either verbally or in writing to do or keep from doing something: expectation or that which causes expectation: a ground for hope of future excellence: (rare) fulfilment of what is promised.—v.t. to make an engagement to do or not to do something: to afford reason to expect: to assure: to engage to bestow.—v.i. to assure one by a promise: to afford hopes or expectations: (rare) to stand sponsor.—ns. Prom′ise-breach (Shak.), violation of promise; Prom′ise-break′er (Shak.), a violator of promises.—adj. Prom′ise-crammed (Shak.), crammed or filled with promises.—ns. Promisēē′, the person to whom a promise is made; Prom′iser, Prom′isor.—adj. Prom′ising, affording ground for hope or expectation: likely to turn out well.—advs. Prom′isingly; Prom′issorily.—adj. Prom′issory, containing a promise of some engagement to be fulfilled.—n. Prom′issory-note, a note by one person promising to pay a sum of money to another, or to bearer, at a certain date, or at sight, or on demand.—Promised land, the land promised by God to Abraham and his seed: Canaan: heaven.—Be promised (rare), to have an engagement; Breach of promise (see Breach); Conditional promise, a promise of which the obligation depends on certain conditions—opp. to Absolute promise; Express promise, a promise expressed orally or in writing; The Promise, the assurance of God to Abraham that his descendants should become the chosen people. [Fr. promesse—L. promissa, promittĕre, to send forward—pro, forward, mittĕre, to send.]

Editors ContributionRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. promise

   Agree to do or complete an act.

   They made a promise to marry on a specific date this year which is easily achieved.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on January 10, 2020  

Surnames Frequency by Census RecordsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. PROMISE

   According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Promise is ranked #88336 in terms of the most common surnames in America.
   
   The Promise surname appeared 210 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Promise.
   
   71.4% or 150 total occurrences were Black.
   20.4% or 43 total occurrences were White.
   3.8% or 8 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
   2.3% or 5 total occurrences were Asian.

Matched Categories

1. • Be
   • Commitment
   • Declare
   • Guess
   • Speech Act

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'promise ' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #3847

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'promise ' in Written Corpus Frequency: #4171

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'promise ' in Nouns Frequency: #1255

4. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'promise ' in Verbs Frequency: #321

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

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Anagrams for promise »

1. imposer

2. semipro

How to pronounce promise ?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say promise in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of promise in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of promise in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of promise in a Sentence

1. Kevin McCarthy:

   We watch antisemitism grow, not just on our campuses, but we watched it grow in the halls of Congress, i promised you last year that as speaker she will no longer be on Foreign Affairs, and I’m keeping that promise.

2. Raheem Sterling:

   When I was two my father died from being gunned down to death, i made a promise to myself I would never touch a gun in my life time, I shoot with my right foot so it has a deeper meaning.

3. Author Unknown:

   We promise according to our hopes and perform according to our fears.

4. George W. Bush, speech, November 19, 1999:

   In the defense of our nation, a president must be a clear-eyed realist. There are limits to the smiles and scowls of diplomacy. Armies and missiles are not stopped by stiff notes of condemnation. They are held in check by strength and purpose and the promise of swift punishment.

5. Yolanda Pinto:

   This shows that the FARC is fulfilling its promise and that they are willing to confess to the victims, i feel satisfied that this will help heal.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=promise
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Promise
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=promise
4. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promise
5. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
6. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/promise
7. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=promise
8. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=promise
9. ^ Surnames Frequency by Census Records
   https://www.census.gov/topics/population/genealogy/data/2010_surnames.html
10. ^ Usage in printed sources
    https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=promise