plead - enter a plea, as in courts of law; "She pleaded not guilty"

profess - confess one's faith in, or allegiance to; "The terrorists professed allegiance to the Muslim faith"; "he professes to be a Communist"

condemn - declare or judge unfit; "The building was condemned by the inspector"

hallow, sanctify, bless, consecrate - render holy by means of religious rites

answer for, account - furnish a justifying analysis or explanation; "I can't account for the missing money"

propose, suggest, advise - make a proposal, declare a plan for something

promise, assure - make a promise or commitment

promise - promise to undertake or give; "I promise you my best effort"

take the Fifth, take the Fifth Amendment - refuse to testify by invoking the Fifth Amendment, which states that nobody may be forced to testify as a witness against himself or herself

sentence, doom, condemn - pronounce a sentence on (somebody) in a court of law; "He was condemned to ten years in prison"

promulgate, exclaim, proclaim - state or announce; "`I am not a Communist,' " he exclaimed; "The King will proclaim an amnesty"

say, state, tell - express in words; "He said that he wanted to marry her"; "tell me what is bothering you"; "state your opinion"; "state your name"

profess - state freely; "The teacher professed that he was not generous when it came to giving good grades"

avow, swan, swear, affirm, assert, aver, verify - to declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true; "Before God I swear I am innocent"

depone, depose, swear - make a deposition; declare under oath

take the stand, testify, bear witness, attest - give testimony in a court of law

decree - issue a decree; "The King only can decree"

animadvert, opine, sound off, speak up - speak one's opinion without fear or hesitation; "John spoke up at the meeting"

count out - declare the loser

promulgate - put a law into effect by formal declaration

nol. pros., nolle pros, nolle prosequi - declare that a legal case will not be prosecuted

say, state, tell - express in words; "He said that he wanted to marry her"; "tell me what is bothering you"; "state your opinion"; "state your name"

avow, swan, swear, affirm, assert, aver, verify - to declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true; "Before God I swear I am innocent"

judge - form an opinion of or pass judgment on; "I cannot judge some works of modern art"

acknowledge, admit - declare to be true or admit the existence or reality or truth of; "He admitted his errors"; "She acknowledged that she might have forgotten"

superannuate - declare to be obsolete

bastardise, bastardize - declare a child to be illegitimate

certify - declare legally insane

call - declare in the capacity of an umpire or referee; "call a runner out"

beatify - declare (a dead person) to be blessed; the first step of achieving sainthood; "On Sunday, the martyr will be beatified by the Vatican"

canonize, saint, canonise - in the Catholic church; declare (a dead person) to be a saint; "After he was shown to have performed a miracle, the priest was canonized"

pronounce, label, judge - pronounce judgment on; "They labeled him unfit to work here"

strike down, cancel - declare null and void; make ineffective; "Cancel the election results"; "strike down a law"

formalise, formalize - make formal or official; "We formalized the appointment and gave him a title"

authorize, authorise, clear, pass - grant authorization or clearance for; "Clear the manuscript for publication"; "The rock star never authorized this slanderous biography"

bridge - any of various card games based on whist for four players

play - put (a card or piece) into play during a game, or act strategically as if in a card game; "He is playing his cards close to his chest"; "The Democrats still have some cards to play before they will concede the electoral victory"

say, state, tell - express in words; "He said that he wanted to marry her"; "tell me what is bothering you"; "state your opinion"; "state your name"

promulgate, exclaim, proclaim - state or announce; "`I am not a Communist,' " he exclaimed; "The King will proclaim an amnesty"