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testify

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tes⋅ti⋅fy

  [tes-tuh-fahy] verb, -fied, -fy⋅ing.
Use testify in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to bear witness; give or afford evidence.
2. Law. to give testimony under oath or solemn affirmation, usually in court.
3. to make solemn declaration.
–verb (used with object)
4. to bear witness to; affirm as fact or truth; attest.
5. to give or afford evidence of in any manner.
6. Law. to state or declare under oath or affirmation, usually in court.
7. to declare, profess, or acknowledge openly.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME testifyen < L testificārī to bear witness, equiv. to testi(s) witness + -ficārī -fy

Related forms:
tes⋅ti⋅fi⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
5. indicate, show, signify, prove.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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tes·ti·fy   (těs'tə-fī')   
v.   test·i·fied, test·i·fy·ing, test·i·fies

v.   intr.

  1. To make a declaration of truth or fact under oath; submit testimony: witnesses testifying before a grand jury.

  2. To express or declare a strong belief, especially to make a declaration of faith.

  3. To make a statement based on personal knowledge in support of an asserted fact; bear witness: the exhilaration of weightlessness, to which many astronauts have testified.

  4. To serve as evidence: wreckage that testifies to the ferocity of the storm.

v.   tr.

  1. To declare publicly; make known: testifying their faith.

  2. To state or affirm under oath: testified in court that he saw the defendant.

  3. To bear witness to; provide evidence for. See Synonyms at indicate.


[Middle English testifien, from Latin testificārī : testis, witness; see trei- in Indo-European roots + -ficārī, -fy.]
tes'ti·fi·ca'tion (-fĭ-kā'shən) n., tes'ti·fi'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

testify 
1377, "to serve as evidence of," from L. testificari "bear witness," from testis "witness" (see testament) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Biblical sense of "openly profess one's faith and devotion" is attested from 1526.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: tes·ti·fy
Pronunciation: 'tes-t&-"fI
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: -fied; -fy·ing
Etymology: Latin testificari, from testis witness
intransitive verb : to make a solemn declaration under oath or affirmation for the purpose of establishing a fact : give testimony transitive verb : to declare in testimony <testified that she heard screaming> —tes·ti·fi·er noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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