Did you know?
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
Zac Anderson, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2025
That stack also featured several books by David Irving, a disgraced British historian who has denied the existence of the Nazi gas chambers and helped popularize the theory about Mr. Churchill’s culpability in World War II espoused by Mr. Cooper on Mr. Carlson’s show.
—Joseph Bernstein, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
Despite Modelo Especial currently being the best-selling beer in America, lower-alcohol beers, and beers espousing low carbohydrate content, have been growing in popularity.
—Don Tse, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
Her replacement, Republican Andrew Ferguson, is expected to espouse a more pro-merger stance, despite his vows that the downsized agency still has the resources to take on Big Tech.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 24 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for espouse
Cite this Entry
“Espouse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/espouse. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
Copy Citation
Share