secure
Americanadjective
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free from or not exposed to danger or harm; safe.
- Antonyms:
- unsafe
-
dependable; firm; not liable to fail, yield, become displaced, etc., as a support or a fastening.
The building was secure, even in an earthquake.
-
affording safety, as a place.
He needed a secure hideout.
-
in safe custody or keeping.
Here in the vault the necklace was secure.
-
free from care; without anxiety.
emotionally secure.
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firmly established, as a relationship or reputation.
He earned a secure place among the baseball immortals.
-
sure; certain; assured.
secure of victory;
secure in religious belief.
- Synonyms:
- confident
-
safe from penetration or interception by unauthorized persons.
secure radio communications between army units.
-
Archaic. overconfident.
verb (used with object)
-
secures,
present (3rd person singular)
-
secured,
past participle, past
-
securing
present participle
-
to get hold or possession of; procure; obtain.
to secure materials;
to secure a high government position.
- Synonyms:
- gain
-
to free from danger or harm; make safe.
Sandbags secured the town during the flood.
-
to effect; make certain of; ensure.
The novel secured his reputation.
-
to make firm or fast, as by attaching.
to secure a rope.
-
Finance.
-
to assure payment of (a debt) by pledging property.
-
to assure (a creditor) of payment by the pledge or mortgaging of property.
-
-
to lock or fasten against intruders.
to secure the doors.
-
to protect from attack by taking cover, by building fortifications, etc..
The regiment secured its position.
-
to capture (a person or animal).
No one is safe until the murderer is secured.
-
to tie up (a person), especially by binding the person's arms or hands; pinion.
-
to guarantee the privacy or secrecy of.
to secure diplomatic phone conversations.
verb (used without object)
-
secures,
present (3rd person singular)
-
secured,
past participle, past
-
securing
present participle
-
to be or become safe; have or obtain security.
-
Nautical.
-
to cover openings and make movable objects fast.
The crew was ordered to secure for sea.
-
to be excused from duty.
to secure from general quarters.
-
adjective
-
free from danger, damage, etc
-
free from fear, care, etc
-
in safe custody
-
not likely to fail, become loose, etc
-
able to be relied on; certain
a secure investment
-
nautical stowed away or made inoperative
-
archaic careless or overconfident
verb
-
(tr) to obtain or get possession of
I will secure some good seats
-
to make or become free from danger, fear, etc
-
(tr) to make fast or firm; fasten
-
to make or become certain; guarantee
this plan will secure your happiness
-
(tr) to assure (a creditor) of payment, as by giving security
-
(tr) to make (a military position) safe from attack
-
nautical to make (a vessel or its contents) safe or ready by battening down hatches, stowing gear, etc
-
(tr) nautical to stow or make inoperative
to secure the radio
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
securementnoun
-
securenessnoun
-
securernoun
-
supersecurenessnoun
-
unsecurenessnoun
-
resecureverb
-
presecureverb (used with object)
-
oversecureadjective
-
quasi-secureadjective
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securableadjective
-
supersecureadjective
-
unsecureadjective
-
well-securedadjective
-
oversecurelyadverb
-
quasi-securelyadverb
-
securelyadverb
-
supersecurelyadverb
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unsecurelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
securesimple
-
securessimple
-
have securedperfect
-
has securedperfect
-
am securingprogressive
-
are securingprogressive
-
is securingprogressive
-
have been securingperfect progressive
-
has been securingperfect progressive
Past
-
securedsimple
-
had securedperfect
-
was securingprogressive
-
were securingprogressive
-
had been securingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of secure
First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin sēcūrus “carefree,” equivalent to sē- se- + cūr(a) “care” ( see cure) + -us, adjective suffix; cf. sure
Explanation
Secure means safe, protected. Your money is secure in a bank. Supportive friends and family make you feel secure. Secure can also be used as a verb. You secure the sails before you take out the sailboat, which means you tie them down. If you secure someone a ticket to a popular Broadway play, you've found them a hard-to-find seat. On an airplane, you're told that in the event you need an oxygen mask, you should secure yours — get it in place — before helping someone else. Almost all meanings contain the idea of safety: making sure things are right.
Vocabulary lists containing secure
The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 1
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Preamble to the U.S. Constitution (1787)
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The ACT Reading Test: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 1
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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.
See Examples For:
It reported that the Madonna and Christ in Pietà was removed directly from inside a secure display case, while all the paintings taken were on wooden panels, preventing them from easily being rolled up.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Fans struggled to secure wheelchair accessible seats, especially after they were sold at astronomical resale values, and couldn’t get clear answers about what accommodations would be available in the stadium.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
But last month, Mehta learned he hadn’t been selected for the job—his sixth failed attempt to secure a government job in nearly a decade.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
"It's a serious storm," Governor Josh Green said, proclaiming a state of emergency to ensure the state and its counties "have sufficient resources to clear debris, secure infrastructure, and take other measures to prepare."
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
They shut the barn door and place a wood plank in its handles to secure it more, then back up, watching it closely.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
By the time of his silver jubilee in 1935, the position of this reimagined British monarchy was securer than it had ever been.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 28, 2022
In general, it was not a year in which the older novelists made their reputations securer.
From Time Magazine Archive
In other words, life strives continuously to make its embodiments more permanent, securer, richer and more manifold.
From Morals and the Evolution of Man by Max Simon Nordau
Armstrong effected the best compromise possible by standing and getting a good “look-see” while he could, and then settling back into a securer position when the boat struck the rough water.
From Down the Columbia by Lewis R. (Lewis Ransome) Freeman
The pony was obstreperous, and the luggage kept falling off, so the Brahman gladly accepted the offer of my assistance, and after repacking the luggage in a securer manner we got along very well.
From Among the Wild Tribes of the Afghan Frontier A Record of Sixteen Years' Close Intercourse with the Natives of the Indian Marches by T. L. (Theodore Leighton) Pennell
The securest hold was Adam Sandler's: his Grown Ups fell a negligible 14%.
From Time ● Jul. 11, 2010
Asserted one of Thatcher's aides: "It's going to stimulate the economy, and expansion is the securest form of revenue."
From Time Magazine Archive
The odds are that Poetry London-New York will not prove the securest of jobs for Tambi.
From Time Magazine Archive
Vickers, the securest of Otellos onstage, does not always seem comfort able on vinyl.
From Time Magazine Archive
Time fades a little even the securest dyes, and that little is just enough to reduce to flat monotones a work in which perhaps sixty thousand tones are set in subtle shading.
From The Tapestry Book by Mrs. Helen Churchill Hungerford Candee
If the petition secures 218 signatures from House members, the full House will vote on the bill.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
It’s the final place that secures a spot in the playoffs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
China’s Taiyi Quantum secures $44 million in Pre-A funding, highlighting intensified state-backed quantum development as a national priority.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
Sometimes called a “future-advance mortgage,” it secures debt on your home and may even allow other debts to be secured under the same mortgage.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 22, 2026
Beetee secures a mask to my belt that I don’t have to wear unless there’s a gas attack.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
“Our teams collected and cataloged the gold, then promptly secured it in a high-security federal government vault,” the local police said in a statement on their Facebook page.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
Already England’s top-rated female player, the prodigy secured the title in a dramatic rapid-chess playoff—adding to a trailblazing run that already included defeating multiple grandmasters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Iga Swiatek secured her first WTA title of the season with a straight-set victory over Elena Rybakina in the final of the Canadian Open on Thursday.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Hichilema's administration has since secured a landmark debt restructuring deal, restored an International Monetary Fund programme and returned the economy to a growth path, winning praise from international lenders and investors.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
Nhamo made for it and secured the boat.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
The U.S. would ensure that Syria and Lebanon make securing the border and disrupting smuggling a priority.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
There was, however, a bit of good news this summer when Stellantis decided to allocate production of the next-generation Opel Astra and DS4 to Ruesselsheim, securing the plant's operations beyond 2029.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The tabs securing the scooper part of his brand new pooper scooper had broken.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
"Our immediate priority is securing the site and supporting the initial response efforts," said Brig Gen Ethan Diven, the acting commanding general of the 1st Cavalry Division.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Caesar ties the tools together and wraps them in his bedroll, securing them behind the saddle.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
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.
