surety
Americannoun
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security against loss or damage or for the fulfillment of an obligation, the payment of a debt, etc.; a pledge, guaranty, or bond.
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a person who is legally responsible for the debt, default, or delinquency of another.
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a person who, as a sponsor, godparent, etc., has assumed or accepted responsibility for another's debts or behavior.
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the state or quality of being sure.
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something that makes sure; ground of confidence or safety.
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assurance, especially self-assurance.
noun
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a person who assumes legal responsibility for the fulfilment of another's debt or obligation and himself becomes liable if the other defaults
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security given against loss or damage or as a guarantee that an obligation will be met
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obsolete the quality or condition of being sure
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obsolete a means of assurance or safety
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to act as a surety
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of surety
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English surte from Middle French; Old French seurte from Latin sēcūritāt-, stem of sēcūritās security
Explanation
A surety is a fact that no one questions. Surety, in a legal sense, is the security you can provide when you apply for a loan. When you're sure of something, you're positive it's true. Such things are sureties, because they inspire such confidence. Also, there's a legal type of surety. If you take out a loan, a house you own could be a surety: it could be claimed by your creditors if you don't repay the loan. That type of surety provides security (or insecurity, if you fail to pay back the loan).
Vocabulary lists containing surety
"The Tempest," Vocabulary from Acts 1 and 2
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Vocabulary from the Magna Carta, List 2
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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.
Former world champion Stuart Bingham also suffered a shock defeat, beaten 4-3 by Zak Surety.
From BBC • Nov. 28, 2022
It owns a similar stake in an affiliated insurer, Seaview Surety, which underwrites the bail amounts.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 29, 2018
Nevertheless, 61 percent of respondents surveyed jointly by leading trade credit groups Berne Union and International Credit Insurance & Surety Association said they saw increasing volumes of new business last year.
From Reuters • Apr. 24, 2017
Surety companies that had insured Patriot’s reclamation obligations agreed to release millions in cash so Mr. Clarke could start the work.
From New York Times • Oct. 1, 2016
My Surety undertakes my cause, Answering his Father's broken laws: Behold my soul at freedom set, My Surety paid the dreadful debt.
From The Power of Faith Exemplified In The Life And Writings Of The Late Mrs. Isabella Graham. by Graham, Isabella
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.
