affidavit
noun
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Promises, Promises: The History of Affidavit, Affiance, & Fiancé
Affidavit refers to a written promise, and its Latin roots connect it to another kind of promise in English. It comes from a past tense form of the Latin verb affidare, meaning “to pledge”; in Latin, affidavit translates to “he or she has made a pledge.”
Affidare is also the root of affiance, an archaic English noun meaning “trust, faith, confidence,” “marriage contract or promise,” or a meaning that has completely fallen from use, “close or intimate relationship.” More familiar to modern English speakers is the verb affiance, meaning “to promise in marriage” or “to betroth.” It usually appears as a fancy-sounding participial adjective:
I like to give affianced friends a copy of Rebecca Mead’s book “One Perfect Day,” which exposes the ridiculous wedding industry.
—Mollie Hemingway, The Federalist, 7 October 2014
Affiance came through French to English in the 14th century, and, nearly 500 years later, the related French words fiancé and fiancée were added to English. Etymologically speaking, a fiancé or fiancée is a “promised one.”
Did you know?
In Latin, affidavit means "he (she) has sworn an oath", and an affidavit is always a sworn written document. If it contains a lie, the person making it may be prosecuted. Affidavits are often used in court when it isn't possible for someone to appear in person. Police officers must usually file an affidavit with a judge to get a search warrant. Affidavits (unlike similar signed statements called depositions) are usually made without an opposing lawyer being present and able to ask questions.
Examples of affidavit in a Sentence
Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2024
According to the affidavit: Police confirmed marijuana on the property as early as July 2021, using criminal informants and other forms of surveillance.
—Frank E. Lockwood, arkansasonline.com, 30 Mar. 2024
The documents summarized these ideas but the plans were never put in place, the affidavit states.
—Jonathan O'Connell, Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2024
The detail, included in an affidavit prepared by a federal agent, further suggests there may be others involved in the shooting who have not been charged with a crime.
—Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 25 Mar. 2024
Gooch's body was found without her head, according to an autopsy cited in in the affidavit, and with a portion of her spine missing.
—Samira Asma-Sadeque, Peoplemag, 25 Mar. 2024
During the pass, the agent spotted Meade crouching low, as if to avoid being seen, in the passenger seat of a pickup driven by Huber, authorities allege in the affidavit.
—Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC News, 23 Mar. 2024
Mitchell's office confirmed receipt of the Cotton affidavit and said Borrelli did not ask for an investigation.
—Mary Jo Pitzl, The Arizona Republic, 20 Mar. 2024
According to the affidavit, investigators found video evidence on Kaitlynn Williams’ cell phone dated Dec. 2 that showed the teen allegedly standing in his bedroom with athletic tape around his wrists.
—Christine Pelisek, Peoplemag, 20 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'affidavit.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Affidavit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/affidavit. Accessed 17 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
affidavit
noun
Legal Definition
affidavit
noun
Medieval Latin, he/she has pledged faith, third singular perfect of affidare see affiant
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