Espouse \Es*pouse"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Espoused; p. pr. &
vb. n. Espousing.]
[OF. espouser, esposer, F. ['e]pouser,
L. sponsare to betroth, espouse, fr. sponsus betrothed, p. p.
of spondere to promise solemnly or sacredly. Cf. Spouse.]
1. To betroth; to promise in marriage; to give as spouse.
[1913 Webster]
A virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph.
--Luke i. 27.
[1913 Webster]
2. To take as spouse; to take to wife; to marry.
[1913 Webster]
Lavinia will I make my empress, . . .
And in the sacred Pantheon her espouse. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]
3. To take to one's self with a view to maintain; to make
one's own; to take up the cause of; to adopt; to embrace.
"He espoused that quarrel." --Bacon.
[1913 Webster]
Promised faithfully to espouse his cause as soon as
he got out of the war. --Bp. Burnet.
[1913 Webster]
Source: The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
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58 Moby Thesaurus words for "espouse":
accept, adopt, advocate, affiliate, allege in support, answer,
approve, argue for, assert, back, be made one, be spliced,
become one, campaign for, carry, catch, champion, contend for,
contract matrimony, counter, couple, crusade for, defend, embrace,
get hitched, go in for, intermarry, interwed, maintain,
make a plea, marry, mate, miscegenate, pair off, pass, plead for,
ratify, rebut, refute, remarry, reply, respond, rewed, riposte,
say in defense, speak for, speak up for, stand up for,
stick up for, support, sustain, take on, take to wife, take up,
uphold, urge reasons for, wed, wive
Source: Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
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Espouse \Es*pouse"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Espoused; p. pr. &
vb. n. Espousing.]
[OF. espouser, esposer, F. ['e]pouser,
L. sponsare to betroth, espouse, fr. sponsus betrothed, p. p.
of spondere to promise solemnly or sacredly. Cf. Spouse.]
1. To betroth; to promise in marriage; to give as spouse.
A virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph.
--Luke i. 27.
2. To take as spouse; to take to wife; to marry.
Lavinia will I make my empress, . . . And in the
sacred Pantheon her espouse. --Shak.
3. To take to one's self with a view to maintain; to make
one's own; to take up the cause of; to adopt; to embrace.
``He espoused that quarrel.'' --Bacon.
Promised faithfully to espouse his cause as soon as
he got out of the war. --Bp. Burnet.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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