pledge

Pluralpledges

Formspledges, pledging, pledged

1. 1
   nouncountable

   A solemn, formal promise to carry out a particular action.

   The senator made a public pledge to reform the tax code.

   Donors renewed their annual pledges at the charity gala.

   Similarcommitment, promise, undertaking

2. 2
   verbtransitive

   To promise solemnly that one will do something.

   Both candidates pledge to lower taxes if they are elected.

   She pledged her loyalty to the new organization.

   Similarpromise, undertake

   Note

   Two constructions carry the promise. One is an infinitive (pledge to lower taxes). The other is a noun naming what is promised, often allegiance or loyalty, as in pledge allegiance to the flag. The word came through Anglo-Norman and Old French from a Frankish verb meaning "to pledge; to support; to guarantee." That is why promising and putting up security share one word.

3. 3
   nouncountable

   An asset or person temporarily handed over to guarantee that a promise is fulfilled, forfeited permanently if the promise is broken.

   Medieval rulers often exchanged noble children as pledges to secure their alliances.

   He offered the deed to his farm as a pledge against the loan.

   Similarsecurity, collateral, surety, hostage, guarantee

   Note

   People could serve as pledges as well as property. In The Life and Death of Iacke Straw (1593), the title character holds a man's wife and children as "pledges, for his speedie returne," and his ally warns that otherwise "his pledges goes to the pot." The threat of forfeit separates a pledge from a simple deposit. It is also why hostage stands beside surety and security among its equivalents.

4. 4
   verbtransitive

   To deposit an item as security for a loan; to pawn.

   She pledged the family silver to cover an unexpected debt.

   Farmers would pledge their tools at the local broker during lean winters.

   Similarpawn, mortgage, hock

   Oppositeredeem

5. 5
   nouncountable

   A person who has sworn allegiance to a college fraternity or sorority but has not yet been formally admitted as a full member.

   Each pledge was assigned an older member as a mentor for the semester.

   The fraternity welcomed twelve new pledges this fall.

   Similarinitiate, recruit, probationer, neophyte

   Note

   Campus slang turns the promise into the person who made it. A pledge has taken an oath of allegiance to a fraternity and accepted its invitation. They remain on probation until formal initiation confers full membership. The word belongs to the informal vocabulary of student life and its social organizations.

6. 6
   nouncountable

   A solemn promise to refrain from drinking alcohol.

   Many in the temperance movement took the pledge at crowded public meetings.

   She honored her pledge and declined the wine at dinner.

   Similarcommitment, promise, undertaking

   Note

   The definite article does the work. A pledge can be any solemn promise, but the pledge, as in take the pledge, means giving up alcohol. Without the article a reader hears an ordinary solemn promise. With it, abstinence is understood and never needs to be stated.

7. 7
   nouncountable

   The handing over of personal property to a creditor as security for a debt, without any transfer of ownership.

   Under the agreement, the borrower delivered the bonds as a pledge for the loan.

   A pledge gives the lender possession but not ownership of the goods.

   Similarpawn

   Note

   Lawyers use the word for the transaction itself, a kind of bailment. The debtor, called the pledgor, hands over possession of personal property but keeps legal title. The creditor holds only a possessory lien until the debt is discharged. That split between possession and ownership is the defining feature. The goods handed over are the pledged property.

8. 8
   nouncountable

   The personal property handed over as security, held by the creditor until the debt is repaid.

   The creditor was entitled to sell the pledge if the borrower defaulted.

   Once the loan was cleared, the bank released the pledge to its owner.

   Similarcollateral, security

   Note

   In a security arrangement the creditor holds the pledge and must hand it back once the debt is paid. If the debtor defaults, the creditor may sell it to recover the sum owed. Collateral is the nearest synonym. Pledge marks the case where the property is physically in the creditor's keeping.

9. 9
   nouncountable

   A toast drunk in honor of someone or something.

   The guests drank a pledge to the bride and groom.

   An old custom called for a pledge to the king before the feast began.

   Similartoast, health

10. 10
    verbtransitive

    To drink to someone's health as a token of friendship.

    The guests pledged the newlyweds with raised goblets.

    He rose to pledge his old companion before the whole hall.

    Similartoast, salute

    Note

    Here the person honored is the direct object: you pledge someone, not to someone. In Oliver Goldsmith's She Stoops to Conquer (1773), Hardcastle asks, "Will you be so good as to pledge me, sir?" Matthew Arnold's Tristram and Iseult (1852) still has "pledge me in it first for courtesy." The noun meaning a drinking toast is its partner.

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