vow

n.

1. An earnest promise to perform a specified act or behave in a certain manner, especially a solemn promise to live and act in accordance with the rules of a religious order: take the vows of a nun.
2. A declaration or assertion.

v., vowed, vow·ing, vows.

v.tr.

1. To promise solemnly; pledge. See synonyms at promise.
2. To make a pledge or threat to undertake: vowing revenge on their persecutors.

v.intr.
To make a vow; promise.

[Middle English vou, from Old French, from Latin vōtum. See vote.]

vower vow'er n.

vow² (vou)
tr.v.
To declare or assert: "Well, I vow it is as fine a boy as ever was seen!" (Henry Fielding).

[Short for AVOW.]

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noun

A declaration that one will or will not do a certain thing: assurance, covenant, engagement, guarantee, guaranty, pledge, plight², promise, solemn word, warrant, word, word of honor. See obligation.

verb

To guarantee by a solemn promise: covenant, pledge, plight², promise, swear. Idioms: give one's word of honor. See agree/disagree, obligation.

n

Definition: promise
Antonyms: breach, break

v

Definition: make a solemn promise
Antonyms: disavow

v, n

Definition: promise
Antonyms: breach, break

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A vow is a sacred obligation voluntarily undertaken either to give something or someone to God or to refrain from a specific act. The inviolability of such an undertaking is reflected in the case of Saul who had put his soldiers in pursuit of the Philistines under a vow to refrain from eating until evening. When Jonathan unknowingly violated the vow, it was only the intervention of the people which prevented Saul from putting his son to death (I Sam 14:24, 45).

The most common vow was a pledge to bring a sacrifice (a votive offering). The Pentateuch prescribes in detail the procedure to be followed in bringing such a sacrifice (Lev 7:16-17); the type of animal to be offered in fulfillment of a vow (Lev 22:18-23) could be either a whole burnt offering or a peace offering (Lev 7:18; 22:18; Ps 66:13; Prov 7:14). These votive offerings were usually brought on the occasion of one of the three Pilgrimage Festivals. Vows would be made when one was in a situation of danger or distress (Ps 66:12-13).

The vow may be conditional upon God's granting some boon. Jacob pledged himself to erect a sanctuary at Beth El and devoted a tithe of his possessions to God, if God returned him home safely (Gen 28:20-22). Hannah vowed ( I Sam 1:11) that, if blessed with a male child, she would give him to the service of God. It was evidently the practice of barren women to take a vow in the hope of bearing a male child. Proverbs (31:2) has such a mother speak of her son as "son of my vows".

A striking example of a human sacrifice in fulfillment of a vow is provided by Jephthah. Jephthah had vowed that, if he returned victorious from his battle against the Ammonites, he would offer up whatever came forth from his house. To his dismay, his daughter came out to greet him and it was she that he sacrificed (Judg 11:30-31). A vow once having been uttered may not be broken.

A distinct type of oath undertakes abstenance from something, e.g., the vow of the Nazirite (q.v.) "If a man vows a vow to the Lord � to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth" (Num 30:2). Deuteronomy (23:22-23) adds the injunction that one must not delay fulfilling a vow, but declares that a man incurs no guilt if he refrains from vowing. Ecclesiastes 5:4 echoes the latter notion when it advises: "Better not to vow than to vow and not pay". These verses indicate the tendency to limit the vows of abstention as well as those uttered rashly. "It is a snare for a man to devote rashly something as holy, and afterward to reconsider his vows" (Prov 20:25).

For a vow to be valid it cannot be taken under the authority of someone else. But silence on the part of the person in authority is taken as acquiescence. Thus, the vow of an unmarried woman can be annulled by her father. The vow of a married woman can be declared void by her husband (Num 30:14-16). See OATHS.

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IN BRIEF: A solemn promise.

I vow to never hurt any animal intentionally.

Quotes:

"Vows are made in storms and forgotten in calm weather." - Thomas Fuller

"A vow is fixed and unalterable determination to do a thing, when such a determination is related to something noble which can only uplift the man who makes the resolve." - Mahatma Gandhi

"Your capacity to keep your vow will depend on the purity of your life." - Mahatma Gandhi

"Personally, I hold that a man, who deliberately and intelligently takes a pledge and then breaks it, forfeits his manhood." - Mahatma Gandhi

"A vow is a snare for sin." - Samuel Johnson

"We must not promise what we ought not, lest we be called on to perform what we cannot." - Abraham Lincoln

See more famous quotes about Vow

Dansk (Danish)
1.
n. - løfte, ægteskabsløfte
v. tr. - sværge, love, aflægge løfte om
v. intr. - aflægge løfte

2.
v. tr. - erklære, sværge på, forsikre

Nederlands (Dutch)
gelofte afleggen, plechtig beloven, bekennen/ verklaren, gelofte, eed

Français (French)
1.
n. - v¯u, serment, (Relig) v¯ux (npl), serments (du mariage)
v. tr. - faire v¯u de, jurer de faire
v. intr. - jurer, faire serment de, faire promesse de, faire v¯u de

2.
v. tr. - déclarer, affirmer

Deutsch (German)
1.
n. - Gelübde, Gelöbnis
v. - geloben

2.
v. - erklären, feststellen

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - τάμα, τάξιμο, υπόσχεση, (ιερός) όρκος
v. - διακηρύττω, ορκίζομαι, υπόσχομαι με όρκο, αφιερώνω, διαβεβαιώνω, εγγυώμαι

Italiano (Italian)
far voto di, voto

Português (Portuguese)
n. - voto (m), juramento (m)
v. - votar, jurar, fazer voto ou juramento (de)

Русский (Russian)
давать обет, провозглашать, посвящать

Español (Spanish)
1.
n. - voto, promesa
v. tr. - jurar, prometer, comprometerse a
v. intr. - afirmar, aseverar

2.
v. tr. - dedicar algo a alguien, declarar, afirmar

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - ed, heligt löfte
v. - lova, svära

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 誓约, 立誓, 起誓要, 起誓, 承认, 发誓

2. 公开宣布

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
n. - 誓約
v. tr. - 立誓, 起誓要
v. intr. - 起誓, 承認, 發誓

2.
v. tr. - 公開宣佈

한국어 (Korean)
1.
n. - 맹세, 서약, 맹세의 내용
v. tr. - ~을 맹세하다, 서약하다, 맹세코 ~하겠다고 말하다
v. intr. - 서약하다, 단언하다

2.
v. tr. - 선언하다, 강력히 주장하다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 誓い, 誓約
v. - 誓う

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) نذر, عهد (فعل) نذر, اخذ على نفسه عهدا‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮נדר, הבטחה חגיגית, הצהרה‬
v. tr. - ‮הבטיח חגיגית, הקדיש לאלוהות‬
v. intr. - ‮התחייב, נשבע, נדר‬
v. tr. - ‮הצהיר, הבטיח חגיגית‬

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