vow

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a solemn pledge to oneself, to another, or to a deity, to do something or to behave in a certain manner

   They took vows of poverty.

2. 2
   verb

   to make a vow

   I vowed to finish my novel by the end of the year.

3. 3
   verb

   to dedicate to a deity by a vow

   At their ordination ceremony, the new clergy members vowed themselves to a life of service.

4. 4
   noun

   A solemn promise to perform some act, or behave in a specified manner, especially a promise to live and act in accordance with the rules of a religious order.

   The old hermit, up in the mountains, took a vow of silence.

5. 5
   noun

   A declaration or assertion.

   Swearing doesn't just mean what we now understand by "dirty words". It is entwined, in social and linguistic history, with the other sort of swearing: vows and oaths. Consider for a moment the origins of almost any word we have for bad language – "profanity", "curses", "oaths" and "swearing" itself.

6. 6
   noun

   A votive offering.

   There are also waxen vows, that represent other parts of the body mixed with them; but of these there are few in comparison of the number of the Priapi.

7. 7
   verb

   To make a vow; to promise.

   When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it.

8. 8
   verb

   To make a vow regarding (something).

   The wronged woman vowed revenge.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English vowe, voue, that from Old French vut, in turn from Latin vōtum (“a promise, dedication, vow”), from vovēre (“to promise, vow”). Not related to avow. Doublet of vote.