What does perjury mean?
Perjury is the deliberate making of a false statement, or the intentional swearing of an oath one does not intend to keep, while under oath. Its central distinction from ordinary lying is the sworn and legally formal setting: the false claim is made as testimony, evidence, or part of an official oath, and the speaker knows it is false. The word can refer either to the underlying false statement or to the legal offense of making it. Perjury is associated with courts, investigations, legislative proceedings, and other formal situations in which sworn truthfulness is required. In broader figurative use, it can describe a bold or cynical falsehood presented as truth, especially where the speaker has promised to be honest. The related verb perjure means to violate an oath by making a false statement, while perjurer denotes someone who commits such an offense. Because the concept depends on intent and oath-taking, accidental error or a mistaken claim is generally not perjury.
nounPerjury is the act of making a false statement or giving false testimony knowingly while under oath, or of swearing an oath that one intends not to keep. In law, it is a serious offense involving deliberate deception in a court or other legally constituted proceeding.
- The act of knowingly making a false statement or giving false testimony while under oath.
- The offense of swearing an oath or undertaking that one intends not to honor.
"The witness was accused of perjury after contradicting testimony she had given under oath."
"The former official was charged with perjury for denying that she had accepted the payment."
"The court instructed the jury that deliberate false testimony under oath could constitute perjury."
The plural is perjuries.
"The investigation uncovered several alleged perjuries by former witnesses."
Perjury is one of the rare words whose legal meaning is already built into the phrase “under oath”: the key is not merely lying, but lying deliberately in a formal sworn statement.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does perjury come from?
Perjury comes from Latin perjurium, meaning a violation of an oath or a false oath, and is related to perjurare, “to swear falsely.” The word entered English through Old French perjure in the medieval period, when it referred especially to a false oath or violation of a sworn obligation. Its modern legal sense developed alongside the use of sworn testimony in courts and other official proceedings. The related English words perjure, perjured, and perjurer derive from the same Latin verb, while juror and abjuration reflect the wider Latin family of words associated with oaths and swearing.
Related word forms
How perjury is actually used
Perjury is primarily a formal legal term. In general usage, it describes a serious, deliberate lie made under oath, although the term is sometimes used figuratively for an especially dishonest statement made in a solemn or official context.