sure - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

From Middle English sure, seur, sur, from Middle French sur or Old French seür, from Latin sēcūrus (“secure”, literally “carefree”), from sē- (“apart”) + cūra (“care”) (compare Old English orsorg (“carefree”), from or- (“without”) + sorg (“care”)). See cure. Doublet of secure and the now obsolete or dialectal sicker (“certain, safe”).

Displaced native Middle English wis, iwis (“certain, sure”) (from Old English ġewis, ġewiss (“certain, sure”)), as well as Middle English siker (“sure, secure”) (from Old English sicor (“secure, sure”)) with which it was cognate.

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term. When and how did the letter"s" come to be pronounced as "sh"? The OED entry points to a source that may have information on this: E. J. Dobson Eng. Pronunc. 1500–1700 (ed. 2, 1968) II. §185 (iii.) and $388. Perhaps early irregular yod-coalescence?

sure (comparative surer, superlative surest)

  1. Physically secure and certain, non-failing, reliable.
    This investment is a sure thing.
    The bailiff had a sure grip on the prisoner's arm.
    • 1932, Aldous Huxley, Brave New World‎[1], London: Chatto & Windus:
      'In the end,' said Mustapha Mond, 'the Controllers realized that force was no good. The slower but infinitely surer methods of ectogenesis, Neo-Pavlovian conditioning and hypnopædia…'
  2. Certain in one's knowledge or belief.
    • 1827, Thomas De Quincey, On Murder Considered as one of the Fine Arts:
      The very excess of the extravagance, in fact, by suggesting to the reader continually the mere aeriality of the entire speculation, furnishes the surest means of disenchanting him from the horror which might else gather upon his feelings.
    • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 58:
      The Celebrity, by arts unknown, induced Mrs. Judge Short and two other ladies to call at Mohair on a certain afternoon when Mr. Cooke was trying a trotter on the track. The three returned wondering and charmed with Mrs. Cooke; they were sure she had had no hand in the furnishing of that atrocious house.
    • 2008 November 21, Graham Linehan, The IT Crowd, Season 3, Episode 1:
      Roy: I'm 95% sure it was him.
      Jen: You... you said you were 99% sure.
      Roy: I'm 97% sure it was him.
      Are you sure to succeed, as polls say? —Well, I am at least certain of making it to the podium this time.
      He was sure of being a finalist.
      They aren't sure who will attend for sure.
      You seemed sure that the car was his. Yeah. I’m not sure what is the point of spending hours and hours discussing this.
  3. (followed by a to infinitive) Certain to act or be a specified way.
    Be sure to lock the door when you leave.
  4. (obsolete) Free from danger; safe; secure.
  5. (obsolete) Betrothed; engaged to marry.
    • c. 1513-1518 (probably date written, published after 1535) Thomas More, History of King Richard III
      The king was sure to Dame Elizabeth Lucy, and her husband before God.

English terms starting with “sure”

certain, reliable

certain in one's knowledge or belief

sure (comparative more sure, superlative most sure)

  1. (modal) Without doubt, certainly.
    Sure he's coming! Why wouldn't he?
    "Did you kill that bear yourself?" ―"I sure did!"
    It sure is cold out
    Isn’t there another way to do it? – Sure is, if you don’t mind going back home.
    • 1802, Charles Lamb, John Woodvil:
      These high and gusty relishes of life, sure,
      Have no allayings of mortality in them.
  2. (archaic) Without fail, surely.

sure

  1. (in response to a request for help or a favour) Yes; of course.
    "Could you tell me where the washrooms are?" "Sure, they're in the corner over there."
  2. (in response to other questions) Yes; I guess; you could say that; a weak or noncommittal positive response.
    "Do you like cats?" "Sure."
    "Do you want me to put this in the garage?" "Sure, go ahead."
  3. You're welcome; polite response to being thanked.
    "Thanks for helping me with that electrical fault." "Sure. Any time."
  4. (Ireland, for emphasis, sometimes repeated)
    "Sure, I'm grand, sure."
    • 1915, Charles L Graves, Humours of Irish life, pages 241-242:
      Was anyone hurted? Sure, they were just trailin' theirselves off the ground. Ye wud have died larfin'. There's Jimmy Hanlon was never his own man since, and I had me nose broke on me—I find it yet—and some says there was a wee girl from Tanderagee got herself killed.

of course

sure

  1. inflection of sur:
    1. definite singular
    2. plural

sure

  1. inflection of surra:
    1. present active indicative connegative
    2. second-person singular present imperative
    3. second-person singular present active imperative connegative

sure

  1. feminine singular of sur

sure

  1. alternative spelling of sûre

sure

  1. plural of sura

sure

  1. Rōmaji transcription of すれ
  2. Rōmaji transcription of スレ

From Old French seür, from Latin sēcūrus. Doublet of siker.

sure (comparative seurer)

  1. safe, protected (not dangerous or harmful)
  2. fortified, well-defended, protected; especially religiously
  3. sure, certain, confirmed
  4. sure-minded (certain of one's intent)
  5. reliable, of good quality
  6. sound, sturdy, hardy

sure

  1. sure, surely, with no doubt or uncertainty
  2. entirely, wholly, fully
  3. While protecting something, with protection
  4. With a tight grasp or grip

sure

  1. alternative form of suren

sure

  1. alternative form of sire

From Arabic سُورَة (sūra, “chapter of the Qur'an”).

sure m (definite singular suren, indefinite plural surer, definite plural surene)

  1. (Islam) a sura (any of the 114 chapters of the Qur'an)

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

sure

  1. definite singular of sur
  2. plural of sur

From Arabic سُورَة (sūra, “chapter of the Qur'an”).

sure m (definite singular suren, indefinite plural surar, definite plural surane)

  1. (Islam) a sura (any of the 114 chapters of the Qur'an)

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

sure

  1. definite singular of sur
  2. plural of sur

From Germanic, related to sūr (“sour”).

sūre f

  1. (botany) sorrel

Alternative scripts

sure

  1. vocative singular of surā (“a class of liquor”)

sure

  1. inflection of sur:
    1. genitive/dative feminine singular
    2. nominative/accusative/genitive/dative feminine/neuter plural

sure

  1. definite natural masculine singular of sur

From Ottoman Turkish سوره (sure), from Arabic سُورَة (sūra).

sure (definite accusative sureyi, plural sureler)

  1. sura