OATH • E-FREE TRANSLATION.COM • Definition of Oath

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/oʊθ/ Listen

noun

Oath n. (pl. oaths)

A solemn affirmation or declaration, made with a reverent appeal to God for the truth of what is affirmed. "I have an oath in heaven" "An oath of secrecy for the concealing of those (inventions) which we think fit to keep secret."

A solemn affirmation, connected with a sacred object, or one regarded as sacred, as the temple, the altar, the blood of Abel, the Bible, the Koran, etc.

(Law) An appeal (in verification of a statement made) to a superior sanction, in such a form as exposes the party making the appeal to an indictment for perjury if the statement be false.

A careless and blasphemous use of the name of the divine Being, or anything divine or sacred, by way of appeal or as a profane exclamation or ejaculation; an expression of profane swearing. "A terrible oath"

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Etymology of 'Oath'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Oath" Quotes from Famous Books

... was hard on both sides, Till Brassy's black-winged was choked; The colliers were tarnationly vexed, And the nailers were sorely provoked. Peter Stevens he swore a great oath, That Scroggins had played his cock foul; Scroggins gave him a kick on the head, ...

— Alps and Sanctuaries of Piedmont and the Canton Ticino • Samuel Butler

... secret club and we're going to let you belong," said Lizzie French. "Where can we go to tell you about it, and make you take the oath?" ...

— Betty Leicester - A Story For Girls • Sarah Orne Jewett

... hunting them into the caverns of the earth like beasts of prey. Our retreat here is known only to those who, for the sake of truth and their own lives, will never disclose the knowledge of it, bound as they are, in addition to this, by an oath of the deepest and most dreadful solemnity—an oath the violation of which would constitute a fearful sacrilege in the eye of God. As for these orphans, whose parents were victims to the cruel laws that are grinding ...

— Willy Reilly - The Works of William Carleton, Volume One • William Carleton

... Let's look the situation straight in the eye. Mrs. Dorset, for reasons we needn't go into, did you a beastly bad turn last spring. Everybody knows what Mrs. Dorset is, and her best friends wouldn't believe her on oath where their own interests were concerned; but as long as they're out of the row it's much easier to follow her lead than to set themselves against it, and you've simply been sacrificed to their laziness and selfishness. Isn't that a pretty fair statement ...

— House of Mirth • Edith Wharton

... adoption, in disregard of the law of Congress, the constitution undertakes to impose upon the elector other and further conditions. The fifth section of the eighth article provides that "all persons, before registering or voting," must take and subscribe an oath which, among others, contains the ...

— A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents - Section 2 (of 2) of Volume 6: Andrew Johnson • James D. Richardson

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