Definitions for swear
swɛərswear

Princeton's WordNet(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. curse, cuss, blaspheme, swear, imprecate(verb)

   utter obscenities or profanities

   "The drunken men were cursing loudly in the street"

2. affirm, verify, assert, avow, aver, swan, swear(verb)

   to declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true

   "Before God I swear I am innocent"

3. swear(verb)

   promise solemnly; take an oath

4. swear, depose, depone(verb)

   make a deposition; declare under oath

5. trust, swear, rely, bank(verb)

   have confidence or faith in

   "We can trust in God"; "Rely on your friends"; "bank on your good education"; "I swear by my grandmother's recipes"

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Swear(verb)

   to affirm or utter a solemn declaration, with an appeal to God for the truth of what is affirmed; to make a promise, threat, or resolve on oath; also, to affirm solemnly by some sacred object, or one regarded as sacred, as the Bible, the Koran, etc

2. Swear(verb)

   to give evidence on oath; as, to swear to the truth of a statement; he swore against the prisoner

3. Swear(verb)

   to make an appeal to God in an irreverant manner; to use the name of God or sacred things profanely; to call upon God in imprecation; to curse

4. Swear(verb)

   to utter or affirm with a solemn appeal to God for the truth of the declaration; to make (a promise, threat, or resolve) under oath

5. Swear(verb)

   to put to an oath; to cause to take an oath; to administer an oath to; -- ofetn followed by in or into; as, to swear witnesses; to swear a jury; to swear in an officer; he was sworn into office

6. Swear(verb)

   to declare or charge upon oath; as, he swore treason against his friend

7. Swear(verb)

   to appeal to by an oath

Origin: [OE. swerien, AS. swerian; akin to D. zweren, OS. swerian, OHG. swerien, G. schwren, Icel. sverja, Sw. svrja, Dan. svaerge, Icel. & Sw. svara to answer, Dan. svare, Dan. & Sw. svar an answer, Goth. swaran to swear, and perhaps to E. swarm. 177. Cf. Answer.]

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Swear

   "Swear" was a 1980s pop song by Tim Scott McConnell and released by Sire Records in 1983. The music video to promote the song was a campy/tongue-in-cheek music video of a hippy-based pagan/black mass set in a church. The stylized music video is seemingly a parody of late 1960s to early 1970s hippy horror movies. A bio [link below] from the Tim Scott website states with respect to the "Swear" song that: "This was my young and confused record...I wrote the songs over a couple of weeks on a little Casio keyboard...Sire heard it and offered me a deal...no use appologising for such a thing...my mistake... the good part of it was working with Richard Gottehrer ...really took me under his wing...shame we were working on the wrong kind of music.." "Swear" was covered by Sheena Easton for her 1984 album A Private Heaven. It reached #80 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the following year.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Swear

   swār, v.i. to affirm, calling God to witness: to give evidence on oath: to utter the name of God or of sacred things profanely.—v.t. to utter, calling God to witness: to administer an oath to: to declare on oath:—pa.t. swōre; pa.p. sworn.—n. Swear′er.—Swear at, to aim profanity at: to be very incongruous with, esp. in colour; Swear by, to put complete confidence in; Swear in, to inaugurate by oath; Swear off, to renounce, promise to give up. [A.S. swerian; Dut. zweren, Ger. schwören.]

British National Corpus

1. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'swear' in Written Corpus Frequency: #2970

2. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'swear' in Verbs Frequency: #661

Anagrams for swear »

1. Sawer

2. Sware

3. Wares

4. Wears

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of swear in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of swear in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of swear in a Sentence

1. Michelle Collins:

   I swear to God it was hilarious.

2. Rudy Giuliani:

   I swear to God, it was a mistake.

3. Donald Trump:

   I don't wear a toupee. It's my hair, I swear.

4. Mark Twain:

   When angry, count four; when very angry, swear.

5. Matthew Prior:

   Odds life! must one swear to the truth of a song?

Images & Illustrations of swear

Popularity rank by frequency of use