What does "sworn" mean?

1. (under legal oath) promised or stated officially and legally, usually in a court of law. 2. (determined enemies) describing people who have promised to be enemies or to disagree forever.

How do you use "sworn"?

Usually placed before the noun it describes. Almost exclusively used in the collocation 'sworn enemies'.

sworn

adj.

US //ˈswɔɹn// UK //swˈɔːn// sworn

1 under legal oath (adj.)
B2 Upper Intermediate Formal Law

promised or stated officially and legally, usually in a court of law.

given or declared under a formal or legal oath, ensuring the truth of the statement.

Example

The witness provided a sworn statement to the police about what she saw.

Example

The attorney submitted a sworn affidavit to the court, asserting that the evidence had been tampered with before the trial began.

Usage

Usually placed before the noun it describes.
- oath bound
- certified
- unsworn
2 determined enemies (adj.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

describing people who have promised to be enemies or to disagree forever.

bound as if by an oath to a particular state of relationship, most commonly used with 'enemies'.

Example

The two families have been sworn enemies for many generations.

Example

Despite being sworn enemies in the political arena, the two senators maintained a surprising level of mutual respect in private.

Usage

Almost exclusively used in the collocation 'sworn enemies'.
- bitter
- declared

Origin

From Middle English sworen, isworen, from Old English sworen, ġesworen, from Proto-West Germanic swaran, giswaran, from Proto-Germanic swaranaz, past participle of Proto-Germanic swarjaną (“to swear”), equivalent to swear + -en.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Last updated June 20, 2026