ESPOUSE

espouse, embrace, adopt, sweep up

(verb) take up the cause, ideology, practice, method, of someone and use it as one’s own; “She embraced Catholicism”; “They adopted the Jewish faith”

adopt, follow, espouse

(verb) choose and follow; as of theories, ideas, policies, strategies or plans; “She followed the feminist movement”; “The candidate espouses Republican ideals”

marry, get married, wed, conjoin, hook up with, get hitched with, espouse

(verb) take in marriage

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Verb

espouse (third-person singular simple present espouses, present participle espousing, simple past and past participle espoused)

(transitive) To become/get married to.

(transitive) To accept, support, or take on as one’s own (an idea or a cause).

Anagrams

• poseuse

Source: Wiktionary

Es*pouse", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Espoused; p. pr. & vb. n. Espousing.] Etym: [OF. espouser, esposer, F. épouser, L. sponsare to betroth, espouse, fr. sponsus betrothed, p. p. of spondere to promise solemnly or sacredly. Cf. Spouse.]

1. To betroth; to promise in marriage; to give as spouse. A virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph. Luke i. 27.

2. To take as spouse; to take to wife; to marry. Lavinia will I make my empress, . . . And in the sacred Pantheon her espouse. Shak.

3. To take to one's self with a view to maintain; to make one's own; to take up the cause of; to adopt; to embrace. "He espoused that quarrel." Bacon. Promised faithfully to espouse his cause as soon as he got out of the war. Bp. Burnet.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition