Dictionary

testify en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ˈtɛstɪfaɪ/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

PIE word *tréyes From Middle English testifien, borrowed from Old French testifier, from Latin testificārī (“to bear witness”), from testis (“a witness”) + facere (“to make”). See -fy.

Meanings

1. (ambitransitive) To make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath.
   • One witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Numbers 35:30:
   • Michael Jackson probably died after he rapidly injected himself with a dose of the surgical anesthetic propofol on top of a large dose of sedatives he swallowed when Dr. Conrad Murray was away, the defense’s propofol expert testified Friday. 2011 October 28, Alan Duke, “Michael Jackson gave himself fatal overdose, expert says”, in CNN, archived from the original on 29 Dec 2016:
   • It was only after a decade away from Skipton that I was finally able to garner the courage to return and testify against my abuser. 2014 August 29, Ruzwana Bashir, “The untold story of how a culture of shame perpetuates abuse. I know, I was a victim”, in Alan Rusbridger, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 09 Feb 2021:
2. (ambitransitive) To make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith.
   • [T]he pleaſures of ſenſe have no reliſh vvhere thou [Jesus] irradiateſt and teſtifieſt vvith our conſcience, that vve are the children of God, and have done thy vvill ſincerely, […] 1733, Tho[mas] Allen, “Jesus Christ’s Sixth Royal Embassy; or Word to the Angel of the Church in Philadelphia”, in The Christian’s Sure Guide to Eternal Glory: Or, Living Oracles Most Comfortable, Holy and Instructive of the Lord Jesus Christ from Heaven, in His Royal Embassy to the Seven Churches of Asia, […], London: […] Francis Jefferies […], →OCLC, page 253:
   • We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, John 3:11:
3. (ambitransitive, with to) To be evidence of.
   • "Iberian-Sardinian" substrate features have been posited time and time again. These have usually been explained as testifying to a migration from the Iberian Peninsula to Sardinia in prehistoric times. 2025, Cid Swanenvleugel, The Pre-Roman Elements of the Sardinian Lexicon, page 15:
   • Paradoxically, the sharp and unambiguous formulas in which Lenin called for the use of terror and denied the possibility of democracy and freedom testified to the fact that freedom had not yet been completely eradicated. 1978 [1976], Leszek Kołakowski, translated by P[aul] S[teven] Falla, Main Currents of Marxism, volume II: The Golden Age, Oxford: Clarendon Press, translation of Główne nurty marksizmu: rozwój (in Polish), →ISBN, →OCLC, page 508:

Forms

Deriveds

testilying · retestify · testifiable · untestified · testilie · untestifying · testifiee

Relateds

compel testimony · testimony · attest · testimonial

Synonyms

bear witness

Translations (61)

fa شهادت دادن (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · bg свидетелствам (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · got 𐍅𐌴𐌹𐍄𐍅𐍉𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · nb bevitne (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ro atesta (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · pt depor (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · pl zeznawać (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · sq dëshmoj (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · it testimoniare (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · es testificar (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · tr ifade vermek (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · bg изразявам (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · grc μαρτυρέω (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · nb bevitne (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · hu vall (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · pt declarar (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · cs svědčit (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · hu tanúskodik (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · es atestiguar (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · hy վկայություն տալ (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · grc μαρτυρέω (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ru свиде́тельствовать (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ca declarar (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · hu tanúsít (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · hu tanúvallomást tesz (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · cmn 作證 /作证 (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ca testificar (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ca testimoniar (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · fr attester (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ro adeveri (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · la testificor (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ru дава́ть показа́ния (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · hu tanúságot tesz (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · de bezeugen (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ru засвиде́тельствовать (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · ru свиде́тельствовать (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · sh svjedòčiti (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · ko 증언하다 (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ru дать показа́ния (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · nl getuigen (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · tl manaksi (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · sv vittna (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · ar شَهِدَ (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ru засвиде́тельствовать (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · it deporre (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ja 証言する (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · mi taunaki (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ro atesta (jurând) (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · hy վկայել (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · mba saksi (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · da bevidne (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · sh svjedòčiti (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · pt atestar (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · tl manaksi (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · fr témoigner (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · sv vittna (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · egy mt:t:r-Dba-Dba-A2 (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · ro declara (jurând) (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · es aseverar (to make a statement based on personal knowledge or faith) · hu tanúskodik (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath) · fi todistaa (to make a declaration, or give evidence, under oath)