underwrite
Americanverb (used with object)
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to write under or at the foot of, especially under other written matter.
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to sign one's name, as to a document.
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to show agreement with or to support by or as if by signing one's name to, as a statement or decision.
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to bind oneself to contribute a sum of money to (an undertaking).
Wealthy music lovers underwrote the experimental concerts.
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to guarantee the sale of (a security issue to be offered to the public for subscription).
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Insurance.
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to write one's name at the end of (a policy), thereby becoming liable in case of certain losses specified in the policy.
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to insure.
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to assume liability to the extent of (a specified sum) by way of insurance.
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to select or rate (risks) for insurance.
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verb (used without object)
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to underwrite something.
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to carry on the business of an underwriter.
verb
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finance to undertake to purchase at an agreed price any unsold portion of (a public issue of shares, etc)
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to accept financial responsibility for (a commercial project or enterprise)
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insurance
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to sign and issue (an insurance policy) thus accepting liability if specified losses occur
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to insure (a property or risk)
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to accept liability up to (a specified amount) in an insurance policy
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to write (words, a signature, etc) beneath (other written matter); subscribe
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to support or concur with (a decision, statement, etc) by or as if by signature
Etymology
Origin of underwrite
First recorded before 1400–50; late Middle English, translation of Latin subscrībere “to write underneath, sign, subscribe”; subscribe
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The clubby Lloyd’s market connects thousands of buyers and sellers of risks daily, with deals struck in a cavernous underwriting room or the nearby bars, thronged by underwriters and brokers every lunchtime.
Argentina is among the world’s largest soybean exporters, and U.S. farm groups asked why the federal government would underwrite a competitor while trimming support for American producers at home.
From Salon
Those factors “will probably give investors more confidence to underwrite a ‘stronger for longer’ outlook for AI demand,” Rasgon said in a Thursday note.
From MarketWatch
Both ventures were decried as money grabs, though LIV endured sharper criticism because it was underwritten by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
It underwrites a swath of specialized risks, including for natural disasters, shipping, aviation and cyberattacks.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
