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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?
Fiancé or fiancée?
People may well be anxious, when referring to their betrothed, to make sure that they use the correct term. So the fact that fiancé and fiancée are pronounced exactly the same may cause some degree of worry and uncertainty. These two words are borrowed directly from French, in which language they have equivalent but gendered meanings: fiancé refers to a man who is engaged to be married, and fiancée refers to a woman. We have, as of this date, no evidence suggesting that the meaning of either word is affected by the gender of the person to whom the fiancé or fiancée is engaged.
Examples of fiancé in a Sentence
Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 16 Mar. 2026
Her fiance, Keith Griffin, was murdered in 1979 when Grace was a 19-year-old college student.
—Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 13 Mar. 2026
Prosecutors claim that on June 30, 2025, North Andover police officers were serving Fitzsimmons with a restraining order from her then fiance, and would take her then 4-month-old son.
—Kristina Rex, CBS News, 12 Mar. 2026
Jonathan Escott and his fiance had arrived at the airport in Newcastle, England, on Saturday only to find out that his direct flight to Dubai on Emirates airline was canceled, leaving everyone on the flight stuck there.
—ABC News, 1 Mar. 2026
Jonathan Escott and his fiance had arrived at the airport in Newcastle, England, on Saturday only to find out that his direct flight to Dubai on Emirates airline was canceled, leaving everyone on the flight stuck there.
—Cara Rubinsky, Chicago Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
His father calls me rude names and fights with my fiance.
—Abigail Van Buren, Boston Herald, 28 Feb. 2026
Huw Edwards with Martin Clunes, and the case of Tracie Andrews, who claimed her fiance had been killed in a shocking road rage attack but was accused of murdering him.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 26 Feb. 2026
Kelce seemed pleased when his fiance’s song started.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fiancé.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fianc%C3%A9. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fiancé
noun
from French fiancé "man engaged to be married," derived from early French fiancé, past participle of fiancer "to promise," derived from Latin fidere "to trust" — related to faith
