Treuthe

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Archaic word for loyalty and faithfulness, especially a solemn pledge of fidelity ; the quality of being in accordance with fact or reality
2. Old term meaning steadfast loyalty or a sworn promise to be faithful ; the condition of being true, genuine, or matching what actually happened
3. A pledge of faithfulness given to another person ; the state of corresponding exactly to reality, as opposed to falsehood

Etymology: Middle English "treuthe" (also spelled "trouthe" or "trewthe") meant faithfulness, loyalty, or a solemn pledge, and it is the older form of the modern "truth." The meaning of truthfulness developed later, so the sense of loyalty came first. Its ancestor is Old English "trēowþ," from the same root as "trēowe," meaning "faithful," which is also the source of "true" in its earlier sense of "loyal." In medieval romances and chivalric writing, "troth" was the word for a knight's binding promise, as in "to plight one's troth," meaning to pledge oneself in marriage or service. That phrase survives today in "betrothed," where the older sense of pledged faithfulness is still visible.