testimony

English

Alternative forms

• testimonie (obsolete)

Etymology

From Latin testimōnium (“testimony”), from testis (“a witness”). See test.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɛstɪmoʊni/
• IPA^(key): /ˈtɛstɪməni/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

testimony (countable and uncountable, plural testimonies)

1. (law) Statements made by a witness in court.
   • 2012 August 21, Ed Pilkington, “Death penalty on trial: should Reggie Clemons live or die?”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

     The Missouri prosecutors' case against Clemons, based partly on incriminating testimony given by his co-defendants, was that Clemons was part of a group of four youths who accosted the sisters on the Chain of Rocks Bridge one dark night in April 1991.

2. An account of first-hand experience.
   • (Can we date this quote by John Milton and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     [Thou] for the testimony of truth, hast borne / Universal reproach.

3. (religion) In a church service, a personal account, such as of one's conversion.
4. Witness; evidence; proof of some fact.
   • (Can we date this quote?) Bible Mark vi. 11

     When ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them.

Synonyms

• (law) deposition

Derived terms

• compel testimony
• testimonial

Related terms

• test
• testify

Translations

statement in court

• Arabic: شَهَادَة (ar) f (šahāda)

  Egyptian Arabic: شهادة f (šihāda)

• Armenian: ցուցմունք (hy) (cʻucʻmunkʻ)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 證言／证言 (zh) (zhèngyán), 证言 (zh) (zhèngyán), 證詞／证词 (zh) (zhèngcí), 证词 (zh) (zhèngcí)

• Czech: svědectví n
• Danish: vidnesbyrd (da) n
• Dutch: getuigenis (nl)
• Estonian: tunnistus
• Finnish: todistajanlausunto
• French: témoignage (fr) m
• Georgian: ჩვენება (čveneba)
• German: Zeugnis (de) n
• Greek: κατάθεση (el) f (katáthesi)
• Hebrew: עדות f (edoot)
• Hindi: गवाही (hi) f (gavāhī)
• Hungarian: tanúvallomás (hu), vallomás (hu)
• Irish: fianaise f
• Italian: testimonianza (it) f
• Japanese: 証言 (ja) (しょうげん, shōgen)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Korean: 증언 (jeung'eon)
• Latin: testimōnium n
• Low German:

  German Low German: Tüügnis n

• Maori: taunaki
• Norman: têmoignage m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: forklaring (no) m or f

• Persian: شهادت (fa) (šahâdat), گواهی (fa) (govâhi)
• Polish: zeznanie (pl) m
• Portuguese: testemunho (pt) m
• Romanian: depoziție (ro) f, declarație (ro) f, depoziție scrisă f
• Russian: показа́ние (ru) n (pokazánije)
• Scottish Gaelic: fianais f
• Serbo-Croatian: svjedočánstvo (sh) n
• Slovak: výpoveď f, svedectvo n
• Spanish: testimonio (es) m
• Swedish: vittnesmål (sv)
• Thai: ปากคำ (bpàak-kam)
• Turkish: şahitlik (tr), tanıklık (tr)
• Vietnamese: chứng cớ, chứng cứ, bằng chứng (vi)

account of first-hand experience

• Armenian: վկայություն (hy) (vkayutʻyun)
• Czech: svědectví n
• Finnish: todistajanlausunto
• Greek: μαρτυρία (el) f (martyría), δήλωση (el) f (dílosi)

  Ancient Greek: μαρτυρία f (marturía)

• Hungarian: tanúskodás
• Irish: fianaise f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Polish: zeznanie (pl) m, świadectwo (pl) n
• Romanian: mărturie (ro) f
• Russian: свиде́тельство (ru) n (svidételʹstvo)
• Scottish Gaelic: fianais f
• Serbo-Croatian: svjedočánstvo (sh) n
• Telugu: సాక్ష్యం (te) (sākṣyaṁ)

personal account of conversion

• Finnish: todistus (fi)
• French: témoignage (fr) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: tanúságtétel

witness, evidence proof of some fact

• Danish: bevis n
• French: témoignage (fr) m
• German: Zeugnis (de) n
• Greek:

  Ancient: μαρτύριον n (martúrion)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: tanúság (hu), tanúbizonyság, bizonyság (hu), jel (hu), tanújel
• Latin: testimōnium n
• Plautdietsch: Bewiess m
• Swahili: ushuhuda
• Swedish: bevis (sv) n

Further reading

• “testimony”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “testimony”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.