Assure, Ensure, Insure: Three Verbs, One Letter Apart
To assure is to tell someone confidently. Ensure makes certain, insure covers financial risk, and British insurance keeps assurance alive.
To assure is to tell someone something confidently, to remove their doubt. The trio is easier than it looks: you assure a *person*, you ensure a *thing happens*, and you insure against *financial loss*. British insurance keeps a fourth wrinkle: life assurance covers an event that will certainly happen, life insurance one that might.
- To remove doubt. *I assure you it is safe.*
- To make certain (older use). *Assure the outcome.*
- Assurance — confidence, or life cover. *Life assurance.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | assure | Let me assure you. |
| Past | assured | She assured him. |
| Noun | assurance | Written assurance. |
| Adjective | assured | An assured manner. |
| Compare | ensure / insure | Ensure it works. |
How it is used in a sentence
- I assure you there is no risk.You assure a person.
- Please ensure the door is locked.You ensure an outcome.
- The car is insured.Financial cover.
Which word when
- Assure — takes a person as its object
- Ensure — takes a situation or outcome
- Insure — financial protection against loss
- Assurance (British) — cover for a certain event, such as death
- Insurance — cover for an uncertain event, such as fire
From Old French *aseurer*, from Latin *ad*, to, and *securus*, safe — the same root as *secure* and *sure*.
Assure, ensure or insure?
Assure a person, ensure an outcome, insure against loss. The person test settles most cases.
Why do the British say life assurance?
Because death is certain, so it is assured. Insurance covers events that may or may not happen.