vow

CEFRB2

/vaʊ/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A serious promise.

  2. 02

    verb

    To make a serious promise.

Examples

  • I have made a vow never to get married.

  • With every broken vow, you bring our ideal closer to destruction.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. A declaration or assertion.

  2. A votive offering.

  3. 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.

More examples

In context

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

  • The rebels vowed to continue their fight.

  • The wronged woman vowed revenge.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

He made a solemn blank to always tell the truth in front of the crowd.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

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.