guarantee
Americannoun
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guarantees
plural
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a promise or assurance, especially one in writing, that something is of specified quality, content, benefit, etc., or that it will perform satisfactorily for a given length of time.
a money-back guarantee.
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an assurance that another’s obligation will be fulfilled, or something presented as such security; guaranty.
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something that assures a particular outcome or condition.
Wealth is no guarantee of happiness.
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a person who gives a guarantee or guaranty; guarantor.
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a person to whom a guarantee is made.
verb (used with object)
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guarantees,
present (3rd person singular)
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guaranteed,
past participle, past
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guaranteeing
present participle
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to secure, as by giving or taking security.
A credit card guarantees your reservation at the hotel.
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to make oneself answerable for (something) on behalf of someone else who is primarily responsible.
to guarantee the fulfillment of a contract.
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to undertake to ensure for another, as rights or possessions.
The Constitution guarantees freedom of religion.
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to serve as a warrant or guaranty for.
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to undertake to protect or indemnify.
to guarantee a person against loss.
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to undertake (to do something).
I will guarantee to prove every word I stated.
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to promise (usually followed by a clause as object).
I guarantee that I'll be there.
noun
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a formal assurance, esp in writing, that a product, service, etc, will meet certain standards or specifications
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law a promise, esp a collateral agreement, to answer for the debt, default, or miscarriage of another
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a person, company, etc, to whom a guarantee is made
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a person, company, etc, who gives a guarantee
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a person who acts as a guarantor
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something that makes a specified condition or outcome certain
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a variant spelling of guaranty
verb
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(also tr) to take responsibility for (someone else's debts, obligations, etc)
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to serve as a guarantee for
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to secure or furnish security for
a small deposit will guarantee any dress
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to undertake to protect or keep secure, as against injury, loss, etc
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to ensure
good planning will guarantee success
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(may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to promise or make certain
Usage
What does guarantee mean? A guarantee is a promise or assurance, especially one that is written or legally binding, that something is of a stated quality or will perform as stated, such as a guarantee that a car you purchase will operate correctly. A guarantee is also an assurance of a particular outcome or condition, as in Weather predictions are not guarantees. Weather often changes quickly. To guarantee something is to secure something, as a ticket guarantees entry to a movie showing. As well, to guarantee is to promise to do something, usually by signing a legally binding agreement, as in The company guaranteed me a job when I signed the contract. Example: I guarantee you will love your purchase and will give you a full refund if you don’t.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonguaranteenoun
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preguaranteenoun
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reguaranteenoun
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superguaranteenoun
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quasi-guaranteedadjective
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unguaranteedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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guaranteesimple
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guaranteessimple
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have guaranteedperfect
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has guaranteedperfect
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am guaranteeingprogressive
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are guaranteeingprogressive
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is guaranteeingprogressive
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have been guaranteeingperfect progressive
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has been guaranteeingperfect progressive
Past
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guaranteedsimple
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had guaranteedperfect
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was guaranteeingprogressive
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were guaranteeingprogressive
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had been guaranteeingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of guarantee
First recorded in 1670–80; alteration of guaranty
Explanation
To guarantee is to promise or to a make binding agreement. If a baseball player guarantees his team will win the World Series, he better not lead the league in strikeouts. Guarantee is a word that is both a noun and a verb: the noun means "a binding agreement" and the verb is the act of making that agreement. This word seems to have come from garante, the Spanish word for "protect" and it's related to the Old French word warrant, which means "to authorize." Today, we often come across guarantee in advertisements, and you might wonder how they might guarantee to make your social life better if your teeth are whiter!
Vocabulary lists containing guarantee
Declaration of the Rights of Woman (1791)
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Frindle
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"The Constitution"
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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 was not a prediction of an imminent disaster, a guarantee that the French Riviera would be struck, or a forecast that every Mediterranean coastline would experience the same waves.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
Although an El Niño year doesn’t guarantee such storms will develop, the climate pattern tilts the odds in favor of a rainier-than-normal winter across Southern California.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
And if you have $40,000, you could still guarantee a portion of it to augment your lifestyle above Social Security.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026
Forgetting your date's name can be a guarantee that there won't be a second one.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
“Then I guarantee you,” she said, “that they going to do their best to keep it from being their life. You mark my words.”
From "Go Tell It on the Mountain" by James Baldwin
Germany's finance minister on Monday met the UniCredit CEO to seek guarantees over the future of Commerzbank, as the Italian lender gears up to complete a takeover of its German rival.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
A few days later they signed Watson to a deal that includes $34 million in guarantees.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
Key disagreements remain between the warring sides on issues such as territory and security guarantees for Ukraine.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
There are no guarantees a deal will come together, as talks could still fall apart or another suitor could emerge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
And like Nazario’s and Bodega’s ways, they held no guarantees of success just because they were legal.
From "Bodega Dreams" by Ernesto Quinonez
That’s because you’re locking up all of your available assets in a guaranteed product from an insurance company that, in return, is paying you a monthly sum for 10 years.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
“November easing remains possible but is not guaranteed, with fiscal developments and post-election policy signals likely to become more important,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Sure enough: InfinityVision, as its website states, is a “certification for premium large-format theaters, meaning moviegoers are guaranteed exceptional film presentation.”
From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026
De Paula wasn’t otherwise guaranteed to debut this season, although the Dodgers would have needed to eventually put him on the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
At first glance this style of numbering might not seem so bad, but it guaranteed trouble.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
Larry Ellison is personally guaranteeing the equity needed for Paramount to buy Warner Bros.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
Congress settled that conflict decades ago by law, guaranteeing the paper’s editorial independence.
From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026
Research by one Bristol food writer has raised questions about transparency, with some creators guaranteeing positive coverage in advance and offering not to make clear their review was in exchange for a free meal.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
The transition talks between the interim government in Caracas and the opposition are backed by the United States, which says they will focus on rebuilding democratic institutions, strengthening the electorate and guaranteeing political participation.
From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026
And there's no guaranteeing they'll be so pleasing to the eye.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
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.
