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Do you ensure or insure?
There is considerable confusion about whether ensure and insure are distinct words, variants of the same word, or some combination of the two. They are in fact different words, but with sufficient overlap in meaning and form as to create uncertainty as to which should be used when. We define ensure as “to make sure, certain, or safe” and one sense of insure, “to make certain especially by taking necessary measures and precautions,” is quite similar. But insure has the additional meaning “to provide or obtain insurance on or for,” which is not shared by ensure. Some usage guides recommend using insure in financial contexts (as in “she insured her book collection for a million dollars”) and ensure in the general sense “to make certain” (as in “she ensured that the book collection was packed well”).
Examples of ensure in a Sentence
Paul Cartledge, History Today, July 2004
Indeed, even though she's been off the mainstream radar for more than a decade, her passionate love for and commitment to rock & roll have ensured that she's managed to make a steady living.
—Tom Sinclair, Entertainment Weekly, 24 Nov. 2000
At 20, [Kobe] Bryant is already living the modern American dream, a $70 million man on the NBA's glamour team in the nation's starriest city. His acrobatic moves make him the envy of teenage boys and his good looks and megawatt smile a heartthrob for teenage girls, ensuring his status as one of the NBA's premier pitchmen …
—Allison Samuels et al., Newsweek, 31 May 1999
They took steps to ensure the safety of the passengers.
regulations that ensure the wholesomeness of our food
Tyler Shepherd, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2025
Our mission is clear: to ensure every student, regardless of background, can unlock their potential through higher education’s transformative power.
—Brennan Barnard, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2025
Slaton-Young said Hilco should reach out to local stakeholders, ensuring those most committed to launching new developments know about all potential deals.
—Brian J. Rogal, Chicago Tribune, 21 Feb. 2025
This downtime is a routine process that Epic Games follows before launching major seasonal updates, ensuring new features, skins and map changes are implemented smoothly.
—Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 21 Feb. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Ensure.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ensure. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.
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