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(s
kj
(r)) [f. SECURE a. Cf. med.L. s
c
r
re, s
crire, Sp., Pg. segurar, It. sicurare.]
1. a. trans. To make free from care or apprehension; also, to make careless or over-confident. Obs. rare.
1604 SHAKES. Oth. I. iii. 10, I do not so secure me in the Error, But the maine Article I do approue In fearefull sense.
1605 
Lear IV. i. 22 Full oft 'tis seene, Our meanes secure vs, and our meere defects Proue our Commodities.
1655 FULLER Ch. Hist. IX. 82 [tr. Let. Mary Queen of Scots] To obtain of her, that she will let me go out of her country, whither I came, secured by her promises.
b. To free from doubt, to satisfy, convince. Also, to make (one) feel secure of or against some contingency. Obs.
1602 CECIL Let. to Mountjoy 7 Aug. in
Moryson's Itin. (1617)
II. 235, I cannot be secured but that he wil stil feede that fier with fewel.
1646 H. LAWRENCE Commun. & War with Angels 118 Which should incourage us to fight and secure us of the issue.
1666-7 PEPYS Diary 28 Feb., Mr. Holliard [a surgeon] dined with us... I love his company, and he secures me against ever having the stone again.
1668 OWEN Nat. Indwelling-Sin viii. 115 Until the soul..begins to secure it self of pardon in course.
2. To make secure or safe. a. To make (a person, his life, etc.; rarely a thing) secure from danger or harm; to guard, protect.
Obs. exc. with reference to a specific danger mentioned or implied: see c.
1602 WARNER Alb. Eng. X. lviii. (1612) 248 And whilst the Writ in reading was [Mary Q. of Scots] no more regarded it, Then if it had secured or concerned her no whit.
1602 SHAKES. Ham. I. v. 116
Mar. Lord Hamlet.
Hor. Heauen secure him.
Mar. So be it.
1624 CAPT. SMITH Virginia Ep. Ded.
Wks. (Arb.) I. 276 The beauteous Lady Tragabigzanda, when I was a slaue to the Turkes, did all she could to secure me.
1639 FULLER Holy War II. iv. (1640) 48 Their profession was to fight against Infidels, and to secure Pilgrimes coming to the Sepulchre.
c1645 TULLIE Siege Carlisle (1840) 34 Wilson..shot Cholmley in the brest, but his arms secured him.
1697 DRYDEN Virg. Georg. IV. 210 His lofty Pines, With friendly Shade, secur'd his tender Vines.
a1700 EVELYN Diary 22 Sept. 1641, A pass..securing me through Brabant and Flanders.
1706 E. WARD Wooden World Diss. (1708) Advt., The Bill..for securing Property in Printed Books.
1707 SIR W. HOPE New Meth. Fencing i. 11 For 'tis a general Rule in Fencing..never to present one's Sword, without perfectly Covering, or Securing, as we call it, one side of the Body.
1722 DE FOE Col. Jack xix, Any English men-of-war that might be on the coast to secure us to the capes.
1729 TINDAL tr.
Rapin's Hist. XVII. VIII. 439 They..only helped to secure Elizabeth's Affairs, who thereby was sheltered from the Quarter whence she had most to fear.
1775 JOHNSON Let. to Mrs. Thrale 12 May, I really question if at this time my life would not be in danger, if distance did not secure it.
1776 GIBBON Decl. & F. xiv. I. 410 Maximian..gave him [Severus] the most solemn assurances that he had secured his life by the resignation of the purple.
b. refl. To obtain safety. Obs.
1593 SHAKES. 2 Hen. VI,
V. ii. 76 Now is it manhood..To secure vs By what we can, which can no more but flye.
1697 POTTER Antiq. Greece I. iv. (1715) 15 Compelled to..secure himself by a dishonourable Flight.
1705 tr.
Bosman's Guinea 320 Each endeavouring to secure himself by getting away.
1735 JOHNSON Lobo's Abyssinia, Descr. ii. 51 We had no way of securing ourselves but by flight.
1760 T. HUTCHINSON Hist. Mass. i. (1765) 186 His men had secured themselves in a swamp.
1793 SMEATON Edystone L. §313 High wages..did not engage them to secure themselves with a sufficient stock of provisions.
1800 Asiat. Ann. Reg., Misc. Tracts 30/2 He accordingly began to secure himself with Shujah al Dowlah, into whose service he entered.
1842 W. C. T
AYLOR Anc. Hist. xvii. §5 (ed. 3) 515 Though Didius..was able to secure himself in Rome, he could not [etc.].
c. To render safe, protect or shelter from, guard against some particular danger. Also refl.
1634 MILTON Comus 618 Care and utmost shifts How to secure the Lady from surprisal, Brought to my mind a certain Shepherd Lad.
1646 J. MAXWELL Burd. Issachar 34, I never accounted them as Apostles, men secur'd from error.
1679 MOXON Mech. Exerc. ix. 164 The Battlement being..Man-high, to secure Men from the shot of their enemies.
1685 STILLINGFL. Orig. Brit. ii. 71 For when he came against the Bagaudæ, Carausius was employ'd to secure the Seas against the Franks and the Saxons.
1692 LOCKE Consid. Lower. Interest 150 That way of Coinage less secures you from having a great part of your Money melted down.
1699 WANLEY in
Lett. Lit. Men (Camden) 293 Whereby Mr. Benson may secure many old words from being buried in the grave of everlasting oblivion.
1741 WATTS Improv. Mind I. vii. §19 [We should] consult the dictionary, which may give us certain information, and thus secure us from mistake.
1748 Anson's Voy. III. ix. 386 A very safe road, secured from all winds.
1754 J. BROWN Barbarossa v. (1755) 66 Is the Watch doubled? Are the Gates secur'd Against Surprize?
1756 BURKE Subl. & B. III. vi. Wks. I 224 The hedge-hog, so well secured against all assaults by his prickly hide.
1784 COWPER Tiroc. 119 Neatly secur'd from being soil'd or torn.
1821 SCOTT Kenilw. xxxiv, Amy hastily endeavoured to recall what she were best to say, which might secure herself from the imminent dangers that surrounded her, without endangering her husband.
1875 JOWETT Plato (ed. 2) V. 30 No possessions seemed to him to have any value which were not secured against enemies.
d. absol. To obtain security, take effective precautions against.
1658 Whole Duty of Man vii. §19. 65 It being much more easie to abstain from all, than to secure against the one, when the other is allowed.
1818 SCOTT Rob Roy xxxvi, The extreme strength of the country..made the establishment of this little fort seem rather an acknowledgment of the danger, than an effectual means of securing against it.
1828 F.M. Perth xx, This guard the burghers will willingly maintain, to secure against the escape of the murderer of their townsman.
e. To take effectual precautions against, to prevent (a danger). Also, to prevent or preclude (a person) from doing something dangerous. Obs.
1633 P. FLETCHER Purple Isl. IV. iv, Which stretching round about his circling arms, Warrants these parts from all exteriour harms; Repelling angry force, securing all alar'ms
1692 R. L'ESTRANGE Fables cciii. 174 Man only is the Creature, that to his Shame, no Benefits can Oblige, no nor Secure, even from seeking the Ruine of his Benefactor.
1697 in Perry
Hist. Coll. Amer. Col. Ch. I. 33 Such fort can be no security for his Majestys Customs, nor for finding and securing false and illegal trade.
1710 C. FIENNES Diary (1888) 83 They Wall round the Wells to y
e mines to Secure their Mold'ring in upon them.
Ibid. 140 They Carry much of their Carriages on sledges to secure their pitching in the streetes.
1831 SCOTT Cast. Dang. viii, I deprecate no hardship..so I may secure you from acting with a degree of rashness, of which you will all your life repent.
1833 T. HOOK Parson's Dau. II. ix, I have secured him from visiting Binford.
f. To render (an action) safe; to free from attendant dangers. Also, to render (a place) safe for transit. Obs.
1617 S
IR O. S
T. J
OHN in
Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 194 The King's ship and pinnace that are appointed for the securing of those seas.
1639 FULLER Holy War V. v. (1640) 236 Two hundred and fourteen years..they [
sc. the Hospitallers] mainteined this Island, and secured the seas for the passage of Pilgrimes to Jerusalem.
1667 MILTON P.L. v. 222 And to him call'd Raphael..that deign'd To travel with Tobias, and secur'd His marriage with the seaventimes-wedded Maid.
g. Mil. To render secure from attack or molestation by the enemy; to take defensive means for the safe execution of (a movement, e.g. a retreat, the crossing of a river); to guard efficiently (a pass, a defile).
1617 Moryson Itin. II. 66 His Lordship..sent Captaine Edward Blany with 500 foot and 50 horse, to secure their passage through the pace of the Moyrye.
1645 SYMONDS Diary (Camden) 242 The out workes, which secured the suburbs.
a1671 LD. FAIRFAX Mem. (1699) 21 It made us think of securing our retreat, with the prisoners we had got.
1698 FRYER Acc. E. Ind. & P. 337 The Passes are easily secured (an Handful of men being able to withstand an Host).
1701 STEELE Funeral V. i, Then..you, and your Party, fall in to secure my Rear; while I march off with the Body.
1760 Cautions & Adv. to Officers of Army 108 It may be the Means of saving an Army, or securing some Out-post of the utmost Importance.
1831 SCOTT Ct. Rob. iv, To take post in the defile..and thus secure it for the passage of the rest of the army.
1849 MACAULAY Hist. Eng. ii. I. 261 Making dispositions which, in the worst event, would have secured his retreat.
1869 FREEMAN Norm. Conq. (1876) III. xii. 210 The main point in the fortification was to secure the river.
h. Mil. to secure arms: ‘to hold a rifle or musket with the muzzle down, and lock well up under the arm, the object being to guard the weapon from the wet’ (Ogilvie 1882).
1802 C. JAMES Milit. Dict. s.v.,
Secure arms! a word of command which is given to troops who are under arms in wet weather.
1892 Rifle Exerc. (
L.-M.) 14
Secure Arms.
i. To fence off. Obs. rare.
1710 C. FIENNES Diary (1888) 86 Its vaine to trye y
e securing it [
sc. a hole] round from any falling in.
Ibid. 90 Water..does often flow y
e grounds after Raines, so the Road is secured w
th a banck and a breast wall of a good Length.
j. To put in safety, ‘get in’ (a crop).
1885 Times (weekly ed.) 11 Sept. 9/1 Shocks of oats, cut, though not yet secured.
3. To make secure or certain. a. To make (a person) secure of a present or future possession, of an ally or supporter, etc. Also const. to with infinitive. Obs.
1610 HEALEY St. Aug. Citie of God XXI. xvii. 858 Assigning..a false blisse, vnto the Saints in heauen, where they..could neuer be secured to remaine.
1620 BRENT tr.
Sarpi's Counc. Trent VIII. (1676) 728 And indeed he was secure of France and Germany. For besides his treaty with Lorain which did abundantly secure him of France, he received at the same time a resolution from the Emperour.
1656 EARL OF MONMOUTH tr.
Boccalini's Advts. fr. Parnass. II. vi. 218 Since no man can secure himself of the next years plentiful harvest.
1670 DRYDEN 1st Pt. Conq. Granada V. i, Secur'd of what we hold most dear, (Each other's Love) we'll
go
I know not where.
1745 in
Col. Rec Pennsylv. V. 5 Had I..been secured of Fund for supplying those Nations with Arms.
b. refl. To get possession of, make sure of.
1675 Machiavelli's Prince x. Wks. 71 By..securing himself nimbly of such as appear..turbulent.
1705 Lond. Gaz. No. 4158/1, 3 or 4000 of the Inhabitants had taken up Arms,..and had secured themselves of Denia, a good Seaport Town.
Ibid. No. 4162/1 Those who have declared for his..Majesty having secured themselves of Denia.
1725 BROOME Notes to Pope's Odyss VIII. 239 Ulysses..finds a way..to secure himself of a powerful advocate, by [etc.].
c. To certify, assure (a person) of some fact. Also in asseverative phrase, I'll secure you. Obs.
1659 HAMMOND Ps. lxxiii. 4 This doth not secure us of the importance of the word in this place.
1672 WYCHERLEY Love in Wood II. iv, He spares not the Innocents in Bibs and Aprons (Ile secure you) he has made (at best) some gross mistake concerning Christina.
1674 BOYLE Excell. Theol. I. i. 32 For ought reason can secure us of, one of the conditions of that association may be, that the body and soul shall not survive each other.
1689 HICKERINGILL Ceremony-Monger vi. 34 But
Mumnot a Penny, I'll secure you, to make one Sound, and one Mouth.
1737 WHISTON Josephus, Antiq. Diss. ii. §3 The events and consequences of things afterwards always corresponded, and secured them of the truth of such divine revelations.
d. To establish (a person) securely in some position, privilege, etc.
1712 SWIFT Jrnl. to Stella 27 Dec., Steele I have kept in his place. Congreve I have got to be used kindly, and secured. Rowe I have recommended, and got a promise of a place.
1713 ADDISON Cato V. i, The Soul, secur'd in her Existence, smile's At the drawn Dagger, and defie's its Point.
1874 GREEN Short Hist. iii. §3 (1882) 125 The towns were secured in the enjoyment of their municipal privileges.
e. To make (something) secure, certain, or reliable. Now only with reference to a prospective possession or result of action: ‘To place beyond hazard’ (J.), to ensure.
1653 HOLCROFT Procopius, Goth. Wars IV. 126 In the Roman army was one Artabanes a Persarmenian, revolted lately to the Roman army, having secured his faith by the killing of a hundred and twenty Persian Souldiers.
1697 DRYDEN Virg. Past. vi. 18 For he who sings thy Praise, secures his own.
1746 FRANCIS tr.
Horace, Epist. I. xvi. 58 Whose Bail secures, whose Oath decides a Cause.
1836 J. GILBERT Chr. Atonem. ii. (1852) 39 Yet merely to know that life immortal may be obtained, is not to secure our personal enjoyment of it.
1883 P. H. HUNTER Story of Daniel 151 Their manner of building secured a certain air of solidity and grandeur.
f. To make the tenure of (a property, office, privilege, etc.) secure to a person.
1736 BUTLER Anal. I. iv. Wks. 1874 I. 82 Our whole present interest is secured to our hands, without any solicitude of ours.
1825 SCOTT Betrothed Introd., The shareholder might contrive to secure to his heirs a handsome slice of his own death-bed and funeral expenses.
1856 FROUDE Hist. Eng. (1858) I. ii. 150 Her right to the succession..would have been readily secured to her by act of parliament.
g. To make (a creditor) certain of receiving payment by means of a mortgage, bond, pledge, or the like.
1677 A. YARRANTON Eng. Improv. 15 The Party lending the Moneys is safe, well and surely secured.
1861 M. PATTISON Ess. (1889) I. 41 Some of the large German houses in London..advanced large sums, taking care..to secure themselves by mortgages of parts of the public revenue.
h. To make the payment of (a debt, pension, etc.) certain by a mortgage or charge upon certain property.
1818 CRUISE Digest (ed. 2) II 208, 2,000
l. part of the money secured upon Gidea Hall.
Ibid. IV. 392 Then such daughter should have 3,000
l.,..to be secured upon some part of the estate.
1861 M. PATTISON Ess. (1889) I. 36 He assigns 1000 marks yearly as pinmoney to his son's wife, secured upon the Swiss possessions of his house.
i. With double obj.: To ensure (a person's) obtaining (something). rare. (In quot. pass.)
1831 SCOTT Cast. Dang. xii, You shall be secured an opportunity of being fully heard.
4. To seize and confine; to keep or hold in custody; to imprison. Now somewhat rare.
1645 CHAS. I in Ellis
Orig. Lett. Ser.
I. III. 314 You should beginne with securinge the person of William Legge.
1677 A. YARRANTON Eng. Improv. 3 Some of which Persons..did intend to get me secured for setting out the strength of the Dutch.
1683 WOOD Life 6 Sept. (O.H.S) III. 72 The pro-vice-chancellor would then have secured him [Mr. Parkinson],..till security for his appearance at the assizes should be produced.
a1700 EVELYN Diary 20 June 1689, Newes of a Plot discover'd, on which divers were sent to the Tower and secured.
1705 [T. W
ALKER]
Wit of a Woman III. 32 Secure that Rogue in the Stocks till we have search'd further.
1706 PHILLIPS (ed. Kersey), To
Secure,..to apprehend or lay hold of one, to clap him into Prison.
a1715 BURNET Own Time (1724) I. 211 He proposed that about twenty of the chief gentlemen of those Counties might be secured: And he undertook for the peace of the countrey if they were clap'd up.
1799 H
T. L
EE Canterb. T., Old Wom. T. (ed. 2) I. 392 ‘Let him be secured’, said St. Aubert.
1818 SCOTT Hrt. Midl. ii, Wilson and Robertson,..each secured betwixt two soldiers of the city guard.
1828-32 WEBSTER,
Secure,..to inclose or confine effectually; to guard effectually from escape; sometimes, to seize and confine; as, to secure a prisoner. The sherif pursued the thief with a warrant, and secured him.
5. a. To make fast or firm.
1663 GERBIER Counsel 97 And so much may suffice for the securing of doores and windowes.
1687 M. S
CRIVENER Will in Willis & Clark
Cambridge (1886) III. 437 Chains for the securing the books.
1719 DE FOE Crusoe I. 305, I sent Friday with the Captain's Mate to the Boat, with Orders to secure her, and bring away the Oars and Sail.
1753 BARTLET Gentl. Farriery xxv. 231 A proper compress of cloth, and a linnen rowler is absolutely necessary both for this purpose, and to secure on the dressings, wherever they can conveniently be applied.
1823 Mechanic's Mag. I. 105 On the securing of carriage wheels.
1825 SCOTT Betrothed viii, A girdle..secured by a large buckle of gold.
1867 A. J. WILSON Vashti xix, She caught up her hair, twisted it hastily into a knot, and secured it with her comb.
1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 80/2 These work in nuts secured to the doors.
1894 S. WEYMAN Man in Black 189 A wide-leafed hat, in which a costly diamond secured a plume of white feathers.
b. Surg. To close (a vein or artery) by ligature or otherwise, in order to prevent loss of blood.
1662 WISEMAN Treat. Wounds I. 35 Having thus secured the Vessels for the present.
1753 BARTLET Gentl. Farriery xxvi. 234 Should the wound bleed much from an artery divided, the first step should be to secure that by passing a crooked needle underneath, and tying it up with a waxed thread.
1880 C. H
EATH Man. Minor Surg. (ed. 6) 34 In the case of an amputation, the main artieries will be secured before the cord is loosened.
6. a. To get hold or possession of (something desirable) as the result of effort or contrivance.
1743 BULKELEY &
CUMMINS Voy. S. Seas 19 We took Care to secure some Powder, Ball, and a little Bread.
1748 SMOLLETT Rod. Rand. xxii, Having thus secured my good opinion, he began [etc.].
1814 SCOTT Antiq. i, The first comer hastens to secure the best birth in the coach for himself.
1824 J. H. NEWMAN Hist. Sk. (1873) II.
II. i. 246 [The profession] of arms..secures the almost undivided admiration of a rising and uncivilized people.
1855 PRESCOTT Philip II, I.
II. vii. 219 His cordial manners..secured the sympathy of all with whom he came in contact.
1873 TRISTRAM Moab Pref. 5 The splendid series of 180 photographs which they secured.
b. Rugby Football. To get or obtain (a try).
1885 Field 31 Jan. 135/2 The last-mentioned secured a try between the posts.
7. Hort. (See quot. 1928.)
1928 Daily Express 11 Aug. 4/2 The Japanese varieties of the chrysanthemum are now beginning to show their flower buds, and these should be ‘secured’, as it is called, at the earliest possible moment. This is done by pinching out with the thumb and finger the incipient side shoots or laterals that will be found in process of formation immediately beneath the buds and in the axils of the leaves. 1951 Dict. Gardening (R. Hort. Soc.) I. 476/1 It should be possible to secure the first crown bud of many varieties during the last week in July.
ADDITIONS SERIES 1993
secure, v.
Add: [5.] c. U.S. Navy. (a) trans. To restore (equipment, engines, a vessel) to a normal state of readiness after action or drill. (b) intr. To be released from drill or duty; to go off duty; also occas. causatively, to release (a crew member) from drill or duty.
1909 T. B
EYER Life in Navy 42 After Secure has sounded everything is re-stowed, magazines are locked and the keys returned to the captain. The keys of the magazines can be secured only with the special permission of the captain.
1918 L. E. R
UGGLES Navy Explained 131
Secure, to stop drilling, to knock off a certain task. To secure from drill such as general quarters, abandon ship, collision, or fire drill.
1927 G. BRADFORD Gloss. Sea Terms 153/2 A signal..to signify that the engines are needed no longer, and may be secured.
1945 J. BRYAN Diary 8 Apr. in
Aircraft Carrier (1954) 152 When a ship is secured from general quarters, the doors and hatches and scuttles are not closed, made
securethey're opened. I don't get it.
1946 T. H
EGGEN Mister Roberts 94 The engine room called the bridge for permission to secure the main engines.
1956 Amer. Speech XXXI. 190 An hour or more of drilling, and the boots are ready to
secure (turn in for the night).
1957 M. SHULMAN Rally round Flag, Boys! (1958) xx. 235 It was a routine training exercise... The launchers were all in firing position... Walker secured the troops from alert.
1978 H. W
OUK War & Remembrance v. 44 You're securing from this duty.
1988 NOEL &
BEACH Naval Terms Dict. (ed. 5) 248 Secure from fire drill.
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