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Commit to Learning the History of Espouse
As you might guess, the words espouse and spouse are hitched, both coming from the Latin verb spondēre, meaning “to promise” or “to betroth.” In fact, the two were once completely interchangeable, with each serving as a noun meaning “a newly married person” or “a husband or wife” and also as a verb meaning “to marry.” Their semantic separation began when the noun espouse fell out of use. Nowadays, espouse is most often encountered as a verb used in the figuratively extended sense “to commit to and support as a cause.”
Examples of espouse in a Sentence
Helene Cooper, New York Times, 25 Jan. 2025
The young people were writing letters urging state lawmakers against voting for new immigration laws espoused by DeSantis.
—Nicole Acevedo, NBC News, 24 Jan. 2025
For the last four years or so, almost all political junkies on the right have been critical of virtually every word and deed that former President Joe Biden espoused.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 23 Jan. 2025
But Trump seems almost as equally committed to undermining his presidency through a combination of tactical and policy missteps: Appointing candidates to high office who are brazenly unqualified (Gaetz) or espouse exotic policies (Gabbard and Kennedy).
—Frank Lavin, Forbes, 18 Jan. 2025
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Dictionary Entries Near espouse
Cite this Entry
“Espouse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/espouse. Accessed 10 Feb. 2025.
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