English
insure
Insure comes from Old French seür ‘sure’, from Latin sēcūrus ‘careless, negligent’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeys- ‘to see’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeys-‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷoizā‘care’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcūra‘care’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēcūrus‘careless, negligent’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400seür‘sure’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400enseurer
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ensuren
- Englishearliest quotation 1787insure
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeys-‘to see’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷoizā‘care’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcūra‘care’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēcūrus‘careless, negligent’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400seür‘sure’
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400enseurer
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500ensuren
- Englishearliest quotation 1787insure
Earliest quotation: 1787, Preamble to the United States Constituti: “We the People of the United States, in Order…”
first attested First attested in c. 1440 (as stated in the etymology)
The story
First attested in c. 1440, as a variant of Middle English ensuren (from Anglo-Norman enseurer, itself from Old French en- + seür (‘sure’), probably influenced by Old French asseürer (‘to assure’)); took on its particular sense of "make safe against loss by payment of premiums" in 1635, replacing assure.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kʷeys- ‘to see’
through Proto-Italic *kʷoizā ‘care’
procurement, manicure, procurator, 5 more
through Latin cūra ‘care’
proxy, cure, curator, incurable, curation, 9 more
through Latin sēcūrus ‘careless, negligent’
security, secure, assure, sicker, 3 more
through Old French seür ‘sure’
through Middle English ensuren
Today it means
verb To provide for compensation if some specified risk occurs. Often agreed by policy (contract) to offer financial compensation in case of an accident, theft or other undesirable event.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *kʷeys- / insure