sweren
Middle Dutch
Etymology 1
From Old Dutch sweren, from Proto-West Germanic *swarjan, from Proto-Germanic *swarjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *swer-.
Inflection
This verb needs an inflection-table template.
Alternative forms
- swerren
Etymology 2
From Old Dutch *sweran, from Proto-Germanic *sweraną.
Inflection
This verb needs an inflection-table template.
Descendants
- Dutch: zweren
Further reading
- “sweren (III)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- “sweren (IV)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “sweren (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I
- Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “sweren (II)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page II
Middle English
Etymology
From Old English swerian, from Proto-West Germanic *swarjan, from Proto-Germanic *swarjaną; a cognate of Middle Low German sweren, Old Swedish sværia, Old Danish swæriæ, Middle Dutch swēren, and Middle High German swern.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈswɛːrən/, /ˈswɛːriən/
Verb
sweren
- To swear to do something; to make an oral binding statement.
- To swear while laying hands on something as confirmation.
- To swear by using a deity or divinity as witness.
- To swear to remain truthful, honest and trustworthy.
- To swear to adhere or remain faithful to a given person.
- (rare) To give approval or permission by swearing.
- To give witness in a legal or judicial context.
- To curse; to utter swearwords (especially as part of a promise)
- To approve or affirm an oral binding statement.
- To form a conspiracy or secret pact; to effect covertly.
- To make a decisive and important statement or claim.
- (rare) To claim or exclaim; to state.
- (rare) To lay the foundation for a religion.
Usage notes
Occasional weak forms are also found throughout the Middle English period.
Conjugation
infinitive | (to) sweren, swere | ||
---|---|---|---|
present tense | past tense | ||
1st-person singular | swere | swor, swar | |
2nd-person singular | swerest | swore, sware, swor, swar | |
3rd-person singular | swereth | swor, swar | |
subjunctive singular | swere | swore1, sware1 | |
imperative singular | — | ||
plural2 | sweren, swere | sworen, swore, swaren, sware | |
imperative plural | swereth, swere | — | |
participles | swerynge, swerende | sworen, swore, sworn, ysworen, yswore, ysworn |
1Replaced by the indicative in later Middle English.
2Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.
References
- “swēren, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-12-3.
Old Dutch
Etymology
From Proto-West Germanic *swarjan, from Proto-Germanic *swarjaną.
Inflection
This verb needs an inflection-table template.
Derived terms
Descendants
Further reading
- “sweren”, in Oudnederlands Woordenboek, 2012
Old High German
Alternative forms
- swerien, swerren
Etymology
From Proto-West Germanic *swarjan, from Proto-Germanic *swarjaną, whence also Old Saxon swerian, Old English swerian, Old Norse sverja, Gothic 𐍃𐍅𐌰𐍂𐌰𐌽 (swaran). Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *swer-.