FORSWEAR

abjure, recant, forswear, retract, resile

(verb) formally reject or disavow a formerly held belief, usually under pressure; “He retracted his earlier statements about his religion”; “She abjured her beliefs”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Verb

forswear (third-person singular simple present forswears, present participle forswearing, simple past forswore, past participle forsworn)

(transitive) To renounce or deny something, especially under oath.

(intransitive) To commit perjury; to break an oath.

Anagrams

• forwears

Source: Wiktionary


For*swear", v. t. [imp. Forswore; p. p. Forsworn; p. pr. & vb. n. Forswearing.] Etym: [OE. forsweren, forswerien, AS. forswerian; pref. for- + swerian to swear. See For-, and Swear, v. i.]

1. To reject or renounce upon oath; hence, to renounce earnestly, determinedly, or with protestations. I . . . do forswear her. Shak.

2. To deny upon oath. Like innocence, and as serenely bold As truth, how loudly he forswears thy gold! Dryden. To forswear one's self, to swear falsely; to peforswear thyself."

Syn.

– See Perjure.

For*swear", v. i.

Definition: To swear falsely; to commit perjury. Shak.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

11 February 2025

ALEWIFE

(noun) shad-like food fish that runs rivers to spawn; often salted or smoked; sometimes placed in genus Pomolobus


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Coffee Trivia

In 1511, leaders in Mecca believed coffee stimulated radical thinking and outlawed the drink. In 1524, the leaders overturned that order, and people could drink coffee again.

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