as in profanity
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1
as in cursing
to use offensive or indecent language
no one is allowed to swear in this house
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in vowing
to make a solemn declaration of intent
swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in testifying
to make a solemn declaration under oath for the purpose of establishing a fact
the sworn statement of the witness was presented as evidence
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Recent Examples of swearing
Matt Peterson, CNBC, 3 June 2026
Strable faces eight charges, including six counts of false swearing or fraud, one count of taking a game animal without a license, and one count of non-resident hunting without a guide, according to a statement of charges obtained by PEOPLE.
—Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 20 May 2026
Producers would have to step in to police the Islanders’ language because there could be no swearing on CBS.
—Anna Peele, Vulture, 20 May 2026
The Senate on Wednesday narrowly confirmed Kevin Warsh as chair of the Fed, clearing the way for his swearing soon after outgoing Chair Jerome Powell’s term ends on Friday.
—Bloomberg, Fortune, 14 May 2026
The 101-year celebration also included a swearing-in ceremony to officially induct Board members and officers into their positions for the 2026-27 year.
—Claire Murphy, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2026
His swearing-in to both positions awaits final White House signatures on paperwork sent by the Senate.
—Reuters, NBC news, 13 May 2026
The swearing-in of the 16 ministers came after only two days of parliamentary committee hearings, a sign that Magyar, a 45-year-old lawyer who took office on Saturday, is seeking the quickest possible end to the political system Orbán led for 16 years.
—Justin Spike, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Immediately after his swearing in on April 14, Fuller began casting votes on the House floor.
—Tia Mitchell, AJC.com, 1 May 2026
Christina Dugan Ramirez , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 1 June 2026
The Douglas County Sheriff's Office honored a Colorado veteran's decades of service and sacrifice by swearing him in as an honorary sheriff's deputy.
—Christa Swanson, CBS News, 25 May 2026
Davidson, 54, became the subject of numerous documentaries, and in 2019, made headlines for unintentionally swearing at Queen Elizabeth II while receiving an award for his advocacy work.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2026
Even the film’s critic-defying, pinky-swearing fanbase may be disappointed in the barebones production, jarring plotting, tired dialogue and ham-handed staging.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026
If Rob Manfred were to wake up tomorrow morning and decide to do away with the seventh-inning stretch, untold amounts of swearing and freaking out would ensue, even though the origins of the practice are murky and the exercise itself is largely an empty signifier.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 10 Apr. 2026
The ambiguity around the word’s origins stems at least partly from a centuries-long moral panic over it, says Michael Adams, an English professor at Indiana University Bloomington who has written about swearing.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 8 Apr. 2026
Tensions rose, neighbors said, to the point that King was heard at times swearing at Kirsten Wells as well as others using vulgar epithets.
—Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 26 Mar. 2026
Warren was bleeding but conscious, propped on an elbow, ordering Sneaky to get the sheep back, swearing when the man tried to move him.
—Literary Hub, 5 Mar. 2026
Noun
Warsh at his swearing-in spoke positively about upholding both sides of the dual mandate.
—Matt Peterson, CNBC, 3 June 2026
Strable faces eight charges, including six counts of false swearing or fraud, one count of taking a game animal without a license, and one count of non-resident hunting without a guide, according to a statement of charges obtained by PEOPLE.
—Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 20 May 2026
Producers would have to step in to police the Islanders’ language because there could be no swearing on CBS.
—Anna Peele, Vulture, 20 May 2026
The Senate on Wednesday narrowly confirmed Kevin Warsh as chair of the Fed, clearing the way for his swearing soon after outgoing Chair Jerome Powell’s term ends on Friday.
—Bloomberg, Fortune, 14 May 2026
The 101-year celebration also included a swearing-in ceremony to officially induct Board members and officers into their positions for the 2026-27 year.
—Claire Murphy, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2026
His swearing-in to both positions awaits final White House signatures on paperwork sent by the Senate.
—Reuters, NBC news, 13 May 2026
The swearing-in of the 16 ministers came after only two days of parliamentary committee hearings, a sign that Magyar, a 45-year-old lawyer who took office on Saturday, is seeking the quickest possible end to the political system Orbán led for 16 years.
—Justin Spike, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Immediately after his swearing in on April 14, Fuller began casting votes on the House floor.
—Tia Mitchell, AJC.com, 1 May 2026
Verb
Andrew has a long record of rudeness to staff, shouting and swearing at them and going against strict protocol rules over security.
—Christina Dugan Ramirez , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 1 June 2026
The Douglas County Sheriff's Office honored a Colorado veteran's decades of service and sacrifice by swearing him in as an honorary sheriff's deputy.
—Christa Swanson, CBS News, 25 May 2026
Davidson, 54, became the subject of numerous documentaries, and in 2019, made headlines for unintentionally swearing at Queen Elizabeth II while receiving an award for his advocacy work.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2026
Even the film’s critic-defying, pinky-swearing fanbase may be disappointed in the barebones production, jarring plotting, tired dialogue and ham-handed staging.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026
If Rob Manfred were to wake up tomorrow morning and decide to do away with the seventh-inning stretch, untold amounts of swearing and freaking out would ensue, even though the origins of the practice are murky and the exercise itself is largely an empty signifier.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 10 Apr. 2026
The ambiguity around the word’s origins stems at least partly from a centuries-long moral panic over it, says Michael Adams, an English professor at Indiana University Bloomington who has written about swearing.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 8 Apr. 2026
Tensions rose, neighbors said, to the point that King was heard at times swearing at Kirsten Wells as well as others using vulgar epithets.
—Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 26 Mar. 2026
Warren was bleeding but conscious, propped on an elbow, ordering Sneaky to get the sheep back, swearing when the man tried to move him.
—Literary Hub, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swearing
Noun
-
Democrats use profanity to go viral.—
Nicole Russell,
USA Today,
4 June 2026
-
These examples are among the more tame messages — many are laced with profanity and references to violence.—
Maven Navarro
June 3,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
The woman started cursing her out.—
Caitlin McGlade,
Charlotte Observer,
2 June 2026
-
Throughout our conversation, Rosenbaum frequently cited examples in which obvious AI errors left him enraged and literally cursing at the machine.—
Beth Mole,
ArsTechnica,
22 May 2026
Verb
-
Ali wakes up in the morning to find Rue in the living room, learning from the news that Fez broke out of prison and vowing to get him.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
1 June 2026
-
Earlier this month, the AFL-CIO labor union, representing about 70,000 Central Florida workers, passed a resolution vowing not to support any candidate who doesn’t resign their office in time for a new election.—
Stephen Hudak,
The Orlando Sentinel,
27 May 2026
Verb
-
But, there seemed to be a slight disconnect between those testifying on Wednesday and the fans who live for college sports.—
Trey Wallace OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
3 June 2026
-
The jury found the use of a weapon in the robbery and the prevention or dissuasion of witnesses from testifying as aggravating factors to Wade’s robbery conviction.—
Sean Campbell,
Sacbee.com,
1 June 2026
Noun
-
This was a weak case for blasphemy.—
Bozorgmehr Sharafedin,
The Atlantic,
1 June 2026
-
The president later removed the post in the face of outrage and accusations of blasphemy.—
Laura Kelly,
The Hill,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
By the time Ben is unmaking the bed, lying in it, and cussing João out, the fight is bad.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
26 May 2026
-
As members of both teams poured onto the field, Miller stood his ground and started aggressively pointing at and cussing out more Reds, directing them back towards their dugout.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Instead, voters have increasingly turned to candidates promising heavy-handed security crackdowns.—
Megan Janetsky,
Los Angeles Times,
1 June 2026
-
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas is promising a replacement ordinance for the conversion therapy ban the City Council recently repealed.—
Dylan Lysen,
Kansas City Star,
1 June 2026
Noun
-
An unusual insult in Grease came to be thanks to a flub on an actor's part.—
Marina Watts,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 June 2026
-
And, to add insult to Cardinals’ fans’ injury, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning of that same game, Jordan Walker hit a ball nearly 100-mph into the gap in left-center.—
Dan Freedman,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Swearing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swearing. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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