avouch

English

Etymology

From Old French avouchier, from Latin advocāre, present active infinitive of advocō. Doublet of advocate, advoke, and avow.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /əˈvaʊt͡ʃ/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aʊtʃ

Verb

avouch (third-person singular simple present avouches, present participle avouching, simple past and past participle avouched)

1. To declare freely and openly; to assert.
   • 1596 (date written; published 1633), Edmund Spenser, A Vewe of the Present State of Irelande , Dublin: Societie of Stationers, , →OCLC; republished as A View of the State of Ireland  (Ancient Irish Histories), Dublin: Society of Stationers, Hibernia Press, y John Morrison, 1809, →OCLC:

     Neither indeede would I have thought, that any such antiquities could have been avouched for the Irish, that maketh me the more to long to see some other of your observations, which you have gathered out of that country […]

   • c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     If this which he avouches does appear,
     There is nor flying hence nor tarrying here.

2. To acknowledge deliberately; to admit; to confess; to sanction.
   • 1611, The Holy Bible,  (King James Version), London: Robert Barker, , →OCLC, Deuteronomy 26:17–18:

     Thou hast avouched the Lord this day to be thy God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice: And the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments;

   • 1820, [Walter Scott], chapter V, in The Abbot. , volume III, Edinburgh: [James Ballantyne & Co.] for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, ; and for Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne, , →OCLC, pages 173–174:

     […] send me that hag hither; she shall avouch what it was that she hath given to the wretch Dryfesdale, or the pilniewinks and thumbikins shall wrench it out of her finger-joints.

3. To confirm or verify, to affirm the validity of.
   • 1571, Arthur Golding, “To the Right Honorable and His Verie Good Lord Edward de Vere Erle of Oxinford, ”, in John Calvin, translated by Arthur Golding, The Psalmes of Dauid and Others. VVith M. Iohn Caluin’s Commentaries, London: Thomas East and Henry Middelton; for Lucas Harison, and Gorge Byshop, →OCLC, 1st part:

     For ( […] as the sorowfull dooings of our present dayes do too certeinly avouch) greate men hurt not the common weale so much by beeing evil in respect of themselves, as by drawing others unto evil by their evil example.

   • 1855, Henry Hart Milman, History of Latin Christianity‎, London: John Murray, Volume 2, Book 4, Chapter 7, p. 159:

     As a great public document, addressed to the whole Christian world by him who aspired to be the first ecclesiastic, we might be disposed to question its authenticity, if it were not avouched by the full evidence in its favour and its agreement with all the events of the period.

4. To appeal to; to cite or claim as authority.
   • 1628, Edw[ard] Coke, “Of Estates upon Condition”, in The First Part of the Institutes of the Lawes of England. , London: for the Societe of Stationers, →OCLC, book 3, chapter 5, section 350, :

     And for proofe of their opinion they avouch many successions of authorities that no fee simple should passe before the condition performed.

Related terms

• avouchment
• vouch

Translations

Noun

avouch (uncountable)

1. (obsolete) evidence; declaration
   • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     Before my God, I might not this believe
     Without the sensible and true avouch
     Of mine own eyes.