ASSURE

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(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does assure mean? 

• ASSURE (verb)
  The verb ASSURE has 6 senses:

1. make certain of

2. inform positively and with certainty and confidence

3. assure somebody of the truth of something with the intention of giving the listener confidence

4. be careful or certain to do something; make certain of something

5. cause to feel sure; give reassurance to

6. make a promise or commitment

  Familiarity information: ASSURE used as a verb is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ASSURE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they assure    ... he / she / it assures   
Past simple: assured   
Past participle: assured   
-ing form: assuring   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Make certain of

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

assure; ensure; guarantee; insure; secure

Context example:

Preparation will guarantee success!

Verb group:

guarantee; vouch (give surety or assume responsibility)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assure"):

doom (make certain of the failure or destruction of)

make (assure the success of)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Sense 2

Meaning:

Inform positively and with certainty and confidence

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

assure; tell

Context example:

I tell you that man is a crook!

Hypernyms (to "assure" is one way to...):

affirm; assert; aver; avow; swan; swear; verify (to declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody of something
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sense 3

Meaning:

Assure somebody of the truth of something with the intention of giving the listener confidence

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Context example:

I assured him that traveling to Cambodia was safe

Hypernyms (to "assure" is one way to...):

persuade (cause somebody to adopt a certain position, belief, or course of action; twist somebody's arm)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assure"):

reassure (give or restore confidence in; cause to feel sure or certain)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody of something
Somebody ----s somebody to INFINITIVE

Derivation:

assurance (a statement intended to inspire confidence)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Be careful or certain to do something; make certain of something

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Synonyms:

ascertain; assure; check; control; ensure; insure; see; see to it

Context example:

control the quality of the product

Hypernyms (to "assure" is one way to...):

verify (confirm the truth of)

Verb group:

check; check off; mark; mark off; tick; tick off (put a check mark on or near or next to)

control; verify (check or regulate (a scientific experiment) by conducting a parallel experiment or comparing with another standard)

ascertain; check; determine; find out; learn; see; watch (find out, learn, or determine with certainty, usually by making an inquiry or other effort)

check (verify by consulting a source or authority)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assure"):

proof; proofread (read for errors)

control (verify by using a duplicate register for comparison)

double-check (check once more to be absolutely sure)

cross-check (check out conflicting sources; crosscheck facts, for example)

cinch (make sure of)

card (ask someone for identification to determine whether he or she is old enough to consume liquor)

spot-check (pick out random samples for examination in order to ensure high quality)

cover (maintain a check on; especially by patrolling)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sense 5

Meaning:

Cause to feel sure; give reassurance to

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Synonyms:

assure; reassure

Context example:

The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe

Hypernyms (to "assure" is one way to...):

calm; calm down; lull; quiet; quieten; still; tranquilize; tranquillise; tranquillize (make calm or still)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody

Sentence example:

The good news will assure her

Sense 6

Meaning:

Make a promise or commitment

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

assure; promise

Hypernyms (to "assure" is one way to...):

declare (state emphatically and authoritatively)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "assure"):

pledge; plight (promise solemnly and formally)

swear off (promise to abstain from)

contract; undertake (enter into a contractual arrangement)

guarantee; undertake (promise to do or accomplish)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s that CLAUSE
Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE

Derivation:

assurance (a binding commitment to do or give or refrain from something)

 Context examples 

“We’re dead safe,” he assured them with a laugh.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

"It would be most distressing, and, I assure you, really it is unnecessary."

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Be assured that he is well cared for.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

I am charmed, Copperfield, said Mr. Micawber, let me assure you, with Miss Wickfield.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

The smell of hot metal remained to assure us that the light was still there, ready to flash out at a moment’s notice.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Let me assure them that this little bundle of letters would give more joy than all the candelabra and butter-dishes in London.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Of that you may be assured.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Fully assured by these words that Mr. Edward—my Mr. Rochester (God bless him, wherever he was!)—was at least alive: was, in short, "the present gentleman."

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

I am afraid there had been some mistake; and I wish you particularly to assure Captain Harville and Captain Wentworth, that we hope to see them both.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

I'm nowhere beside you, for Belle has heaps of taste, and you're quite French, I assure you.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)