hand to God
2
8.2
- idiom
- Informal
:
te lo juro
- I promise you, hand to God, that I didn't take your book.
I mean, that's it's it's intoxicating, but it from, you know, hand to God, I have not been approached at all.
- I mean, that's it's it's intoxicating, but it from, you know, hand to God, I have not been approached at all.
Examples
-
My hand to God.
Fiction book (1997) -
Hand to God, this is exactly what Chickie says he says to him.
Fiction book (2001) -
My hand to God.
Fiction book (1997) -
I mean, that's it's it's intoxicating, but it from, you know, hand to God, I have not been approached at all.
-
Hand to God, I will always tell the truth in our relationship.
-
When I say I love you, hand to God, I truly mean it.
Synonyms
∞
4.6
To make a serious promise, often in court
5
6.1
A phrase people say to show what they say is really true
1
8.4
Say very firmly that something is true, even if others doubt it
To promise honestly that you are telling the truth
A word people say to show they are telling the truth
How Sincere
Surface Forms
Morphology
hand + to + God
The phrase invokes God, so a learner who knows 'hand' and 'God' may infer a religious or oath-like act, but the conventionalized function as an emphatic 'I swear / honestly' is culturally specific and not fully predictable from the literal words. Cross-linguistic parallels (many languages use God-invocation for swearing) give partial clues, but the exact pragmatic usage and fixed form require prior exposure.
Etymology
Hand to God may come from the old act of placing your hand on the Bible or raising it toward God when you promise something. That strong image of a hand toward God is used to show you mean it, so the phrase means 'honestly' or 'I swear'.