covenants 1 of 2

plural of covenant
1
as in treaties
a formal agreement between two or more nations or peoples the two countries signed a peace covenant that, it was hoped, would put an end to decades of bitter conflict

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2
3

covenants

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of covenant
1
as in bargains
to come to an arrangement as to a course of action a traditional rule held that a husband could not enter into a covenant with his wife, because that was the equivalent of covenanting with himself

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2
as in promises
to make a solemn declaration of intent the home buyers had to covenant that they would restore and keep the house for at least 10 years in exchange for a low mortgage rate

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of covenants
Noun
Each temple is considered a house of the Lord, where the teachings of Jesus Christ are reaffirmed through sacred ordinances, learning about life’s purpose and making covenants to follow Jesus Christ and serve others. Fousia Abdullahi, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Aug. 2026 As restrictive racial covenants to limit who could own property spread over the East Bay, more than 1,400 Black and Latino residents found a haven on the other side of the Union Pacific railroad tracks west of downtown Hayward. Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2026 Bailey’s order also placed an injunction prohibiting Attard from leasing the house and, because affordability covenants eventually expire, the judge demanded the clock reset to account for the three years Welcome to Realty had owned the house. Noelle Phillips, Denver Post, 5 Aug. 2026 Those rules – codes, covenants and restrictions, known collectively as CCRs – are often created by developers, who initially control the HOA. Daniel Kramer, The Conversation, 3 Aug. 2026 His resulting exploration tracks the ways in which Black residents were effectively segregated, through racial covenants and redlining, and overpoliced. The New Yorker, New Yorker, 20 July 2026 Equity investors can absorb large losses without pulling the banking system into trouble, but credit adds lenders, covenants, collateral values, refinancing dates and off balance sheet structures. Ron Schmelzer, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026 Your book deals with a piece of legislation called the Rumford Act that would tear down the city’s racist racial housing covenants in 1963, but the act in ’62 had enemies in high places, namely Mayor Sam Yorty and his power base. Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2026 Like some other suburbs at the time, restrictive covenants kept minorities out. Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for covenants
Noun
  • Gone is a hadith likening Christians and Jews to maimed animals; 11th-grade students now learn about coexistence from the Prophet Muhammad’s treaties with Christians and Jews.
    Manal Albarakati, semafor.com, 12 Aug. 2026
  • The Geneva Conventions, a set of treaties governing the conduct of warring parties, which were ratified in the aftermath of the Second World War, forbid the arbitrary detention of civilians.
    Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • While the district took a series of cost-cutting steps — including freezing spending on supplies, hiring and most new contracts, as well as laying off employees — successive budget updates showed the financial hole continuing to deepen.
    Chaewon Chung August 16, Sacbee.com, 16 Aug. 2026
  • That could include smaller firms, venture capital backed startups, and companies looking to get in on potentially lucrative government contracts.
    Henry Larson, NPR, 15 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • The Virgo Moon moves through your 8th House of Intimacy and Shared Resources, highlighting money, emotional stakes, private agreements, and what needs more precision.
    Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 14 Aug. 2026
  • As of last year, all 67 counties had signed cooperation agreements with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to the Florida Sheriffs Association.
    Marisa Peñaloza, NPR, 14 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • The union usually bargains in the same year as performers’ union SAG-AFTRA and directors’ union the Directors Guild of America.
    Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 6 Apr. 2026
  • One potential—though untested—workaround would be for conferences, which are private entities, to serve as a joint employer that bargains with a players’ union.
    Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 10 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • For outdoor workout tracking, Google's latest GPS software promises improved accuracy in tough conditions.
    Andrew Gebhart, PC Magazine, 19 Aug. 2026
  • The other is a former Republican congressman turned Democrat who promises to hit pause on the construction of new data centers.
    Kairi Lowery, Miami Herald, 19 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • NBCUniversal‘s Peacock launched a limited new membership program in a beta test with a variety of perks — aimed at keeping them from flying the coop as streaming subscribers, as well as driving incremental revenue from marketing pacts.
    Todd Spangler, Variety, 17 Aug. 2026
  • On climate, liberals would offer tax rewards for green energy, support joining climate pacts, and phasing out fossil fuels gradually over decades.
    Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 14 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • For Kyiv, that list likely includes respect for its sovereign rights, security guarantees, military capabilities sufficient to deter Russia, and funding for reconstruction.
    Matt Waldman, Foreign Affairs, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Further, the deal does not include any marketing guarantees or baseline prints-and-advertising spends.
    Chris Lee, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • This tension is sustained by the film’s movement between the conventions of narrative cinema and the durational logic of video art.
    Matilda Hague, Variety, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Reunion films, fan conventions, and a steady stream of syndication have kept the Walton family — and its cast — in circulation long after the original goodnights echoed across the airwaves.
    Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Covenants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/covenants. Accessed 20 Aug. 2026.

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