pledging

verb

present participle of pledge
1
as in committing
to obligate by prior agreement I would love to go to dinner with you, but I've pledged myself to a play with my parents that night

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in pawning
to leave as a guarantee of repayment of a loan pledged their house against the loan

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in vowing
to make a solemn declaration of intent I pledge that I will abide by all of the rules of this organization

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pledging Daniel Slim | Afp | Getty Images American Airlines has joined the growing list of employers pledging to match contributions to Trump Accounts for their employees, the company said Monday in an announcement exclusively provided to CNBC. — Jessica Dickler, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026 Ellison has now satisfied that request, pledging in writing to release 30 films a year for three years and to give each a 45-day window. — Gene Maddaus, Variety, 25 Aug. 2026 Investigators uncovered audio files of Bowie pledging her allegiance to ISIS, which the FBI identified from a reference to the current leader of the terrorist group. — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 20 Aug. 2026 In early January, Microsoft revealed its involvement and kicked off a PR blitz — holding town halls, pledging not to drive up power bills and, in a major shift, scrapping non-disclosure agreements and property tax breaks with local governments. — Bloomberg, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2026 The feel of the farm was just as strong as the buzz of the ballpark, with natural sponsor John Deere pledging $100,000 per home run hit to hunger-relief organization Feeding America. — Dave Campbell, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026 In fact, one of Schleien’s Free Israel videos was directed at American liberals, after a group of Hollywood actors and other film workers signed a letter pledging to boycott some institutions within the Israeli film industry. — Bernard Avishai, New Yorker, 11 Aug. 2026 What businesses are doing with the money varies -- some are reinvesting it while others are pledging to lower prices in the future. — Elizabeth Schulze, ABC News, 5 Aug. 2026 After previous drone strikes on its facilities, the e-commerce giant issued statements pledging financial support for sellers whose goods were damaged. — Callum Sutherland, Time, 5 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pledging
  1. committing
  2. pawning
  3. vowing
  4. depositing
  5. promising
  6. swearing
Verb
  • The country is also placing its hopes on automation, with the government committing 1 billion Singapore dollars ($787 million) to public AI research from 2026 to 2030.
    — Angelica Ang, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Always check industry average rates and lender rates before committing to a mortgage lender.
    — Dan Simms, USA Today, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of committing
Verb
  • Hayden Panettiere’s boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, drained the actress emotionally and financially, even pawning some of her possessions and keeping others in a storage unit, her estranged mom Lesley Vogel claims.
    — Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 24 Aug. 2026
  • When interviewed by police in May, Weckesser allegedly admitted to stealing the ring from the home and re-shaping it before pawning it off.
    — Kimberlee Speakman, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026
Definition of pawning
Verb
  • After vowing to return from his latest calf injury before the end of the season, Juan Soto came back before the end of August, a full month before the New York Mets enter their offseason.
    — Will Sammon, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Federal regulators, maritime agencies and Long Beach officials are crafting safety and oversight rules, vowing transparent public engagement.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of vowing
Verb
  • Covering gray means depositing enough pigment to make white or silver strands disappear into one uniform color.
    — Casey DelBasso, ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026
  • The scheme reportedly involved depositing checks from accounts with insufficient funds, then withdrawing the temporarily available money, leaving the banks to absorb the losses once the checks bounced, court records show.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of depositing
Verb
  • The Sparks’ new facility looks promising, but Mark Walter should still sell the team, argues sports columnist Mirjam Swanson.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Initial blood work appeared promising, but Samba failed to recover after being placed under anesthesia.
    — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of promising
Verb
  • Kito showed Becerra a picture of the then-congressman swearing him in as a neighborhood council president more than a decade ago.
    — Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2026
  • As Sportico detailed last year, McEnroe remembers MSG employees asking Oakley to leave and Oakley responding by swearing at them.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of swearing

Browse Nearby Words

pledges
pledging
plenary
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pledging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pledging. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All