secure

B1 Topic:Safety & Risk

US /sɪˈkjʊə(ɹ)/ See IPA manual

Freq #2625

Meanings

1

adj
safe and protected from danger or harm

Make sure the building is secure at night.
2

adj
firmly fixed and not likely to come loose or fail

Check that the ladder is secure before you climb it.
3

adj
feeling safe, confident, and free from worry

A good job made her feel financially secure.
4

verb
to succeed in getting or achieving something

The team worked hard to secure the contract.
5

verb
to make something safe or firmly fixed

They secured the doors before the storm.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Opposites

insecure

Word family

Forms securedsecurersecuressecurestsecuring

Derived forms biosecurecountersecurecybersecurefood-securenonsecureoversecureresecuresecurabilitysecurablesecurancesecurelysecurement

Related forms security

Appears in

Phrases (2)

See all

Simplified etymology

Secure entered Middle English and belongs to the group of words derived from Latin cura, meaning “care”; its underlying sense is “free from care.”

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin sēcūrus (“of persons, free from care, quiet, easy; in a bad sense, careless, reckless; of things, tranquil, also free from danger, safe, secure”), from sē- (“without”) + cūra (“care”); see cure. Doublet of sure and the now obsolete or dialectal sicker (“certain, safe”).

Topics

Safety & Risk

External links

# secure

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** adj, verb
**IPA (US):** /sɪˈkjʊə(ɹ)/
**Frequency rank:** 2625

## Meanings
1. safe and protected from danger or harm
2. firmly fixed and not likely to come loose or fail
3. feeling safe, confident, and free from worry
4. to succeed in getting or achieving something
5. to make something safe or firmly fixed

## Examples
- Make sure the building is secure at night.
- Check that the ladder is secure before you climb it.
- A good job made her feel financially secure.
- The team worked hard to secure the contract.
- They secured the doors before the storm.

## Antonyms
- insecure

## Derived Forms
- biosecure
- countersecure
- cybersecure
- food-secure
- nonsecure
- oversecure
- resecure
- securability
- securable
- securance
- securely
- securement

## Related Forms
- security

## Etymology
Borrowed from Latin sēcūrus (“of persons, free from care, quiet, easy; in a bad sense, careless, reckless; of things, tranquil, also free from danger, safe, secure”), from sē- (“without”) + cūra (“care”); see cure. Doublet of sure and the now obsolete or dialectal sicker (“certain, safe”).

## AI Etymology
Secure is borrowed from Latin sēcūrus (“of persons, free from care, quiet, easy; in a bad sense, careless, reckless; of things, tranquil, also free from danger, safe, secure”), from sē- (“without”) + cūra (“care”); see cure. Doublet of sure and the now obsolete or dialectal sicker (“certain, safe”). In current use it includes senses such as safe and protected from danger or harm and firmly fixed and not likely to come loose or fail.

## Topics
- Safety & Risk

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