Talk:promise

Possible missing verb sense: "to stand sponsor"
Chambers 1908 has an intransitive verb sense "(rare) to stand sponsor", which I would assume to mean godparent. There is this in the Book of Common Prayer: "the Priest addresses himself to the Godfathers and Godmothers to promise for him, and from them takes security that the Infant shall observe the conditions..." Equinox ◑ 02:01, 24 April 2020 (UTC)

New meaning for the English verb
I’m no good at editing Wiktionary, so I’ll only mention here that I hear the verb "promise" used a lot to signify "assure" as such – not as "assure of a promise" as indicated in the current version. I think this is fairly "young" usage in American English, but it may be more widespread.

Am I allowed to paste a link here? Then this would be a good example of the usage I mean (it’s said towards the end, sorry for the wait…): https://www.youtube.com/shorts/BfXTnzBKh6A --Geke (talk) 18:30, 9 October 2022 (UTC)


 * Thanks. It would help if you can write down the line(s) you are talking about. YouTube videos frequently get deleted for various reasons. Equinox ◑ 18:33, 9 October 2022 (UTC)
 * The relevant exchange is "Let me transfer you back for today, Kelly. You spent so much money on us. / It's chill, I promise." &mdash;The Editor's Apprentice (talk) 19:01, 9 October 2022 (UTC)


 * "Assure of commitment" does seem to cover this, as far as I can see. Equinox ◑ 21:20, 9 October 2022 (UTC)

Thanks for the transcription, Editor’s Apprentice! I just forgot about this, obviously. Geke @ Equinox: I read "commitment" as pertaining to some action, which doesn’t apply to the use I’m talking about, where the speaker has no control over the outcome, and still uses the word "promise". It's a little closer to the 2nd verb meaning given, like in this quote: …and even had he promised to turn out a celebrity…

The Webster article says it most clearly (the last entry): "Will not the ladies be afeard of the lion? – I fear it, I promise you".

In cases like these, "I promise you" translates as the interjection "Believe me" or as "I assure you", not as "I make a promise to you". Maybe that makes it clearer? --Geke (talk) 14:16, 6 January 2023 (UTC)