cross my heart and hope to die
Childhood promise phrase
Cross my heart and hope to die is a children's oath of sincerity, pledging that one is telling the truth or will keep a promise.
The phrase often accompanies a ritual gesture of tracing an X over the chest.
Adults use it playfully or nostalgically: Cross my heart and hope to die, I didn't touch your leftovers.
Sometimes shortened to cross my heart.
- stick a needle in my eyeOath invoking bodily harm
- pinky swearPledge sealed by linking fingers
- sacred vowsReligiously binding promises
- oathFormal binding promise
- solemn vowGrave, binding promise
promise · honesty · integrity · swear · pledge · hope · honest to God · sincerity · truthfulness · give one's word · hand on heart · heart · honor · truth or dare · shaking hands · swear to God · touching wood · loyalty oath
cross my heart and hope to diejust kidding
Retraction of a jest
fingers crossed · white lie · empty promise · false oath · bald-faced lie
cross my heart and hope to dieunder oath
Formally pledged to honesty
affidavit · sworn testimony · vow · covenant · blood oath
crossed, crossing, crosses, crosser, hearts, hearted, heartless, hearty, heartily