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sure thing

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noun
  1. something that is or is supposed to be a certain success, as a bet or a business venture: He thinks that real estate is a sure thing.
  2. something assured; certainty: It's a sure thing that he'll refuse to cooperate.
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interjection
  1. surely; for sure; O.K.
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Origin of sure thing

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for sure thing

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Talk of loaded dice, or any of the sure-thing gambling devices!

    Frenzied Finance

    Thomas W. Lawson

  • The community pays the bill for the benefit of the sure-thing gambler.

    Exempting the Churches

    James F. Morton. Jr.

  • We have some sure-thing players with us, but he is not one of them.

    Fore!

    Charles Emmett Van Loan

  • Uh course, I aim to beat him to it, but Happy never does like to have a sure-thing.

    The Happy Family

    Bertha Muzzy Bower

  • Denied a sure-thing victory They were forced to call off Their war—with violent internal results.

    The Final Figure

    Samuel Kimball Merwin

British Dictionary definitions for sure thing

sure thing

adverb
  1. (sentence substitute) mainly US all right! yes indeed! used to express enthusiastic assent
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noun
  1. something guaranteed to be successful
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with sure thing

sure thing

1

a sure thing. A certainty, as in Making the bestseller list has been a sure thing for Stephen King. This usage originally alluded to a bet that one could not lose. [First half of 1800s]

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2

Yes indeed, certainly, as in Are you coming tonight?—Sure thing! This use of the idiom as an interjection dates from the late 1800s.

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.