blood oath

noun

: an oath taken by two or more people in which they ceremonially use or exchange each other's blood

broadly : a very serious or solemn oath

… she'd have to sign a blood oath promising that no matter what happened she'd never leave once that child was born …

—Ron Harris, Elle, March 1993

Back when we were 17, we all took a blood oath to record three albums of 30-minute punk rock, and nobody would get to leave until we'd done just that.

—Pelle Almqvist, Spin, November 2007

Word History

First Known Use

1856, in the meaning defined above

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