Do you find yourself waking up in the middle of the night, overwhelmed by the crippling fear you may have experienced? ensure, insuranceor assure when one of the others is called in, when writing to a very important person? We hope not, because it really isn’t worth the loss of sleep (but good for you since you’re still writing). Furthermore, your reader is not only likely to confuse these three words, but there are many instances where they are practically interchangeable.
We assure you this is a common problem.
As a means of illustrating this, let’s look at some definitions for each word found in non-abbreviated dictionary:
Insurance
Sense 2: Guaranteed Sense 3: Guaranteed
Ensure
Sense 2: Guarantee Sense 3: Guarantee
Assure
Sense 1: Guarantee Sense 6: Guarantee
Each of these words has a number of meanings of its own, some that are not completely separate from the others, and some that overlap almost entirely.
Before we look at what the difference might be, it’s worth noting that this is one of many areas of English where there’s no consensus on what’s right. An optimist might see this as ‘no matter what I choose, some will think I’m right.’ Instead, a pessimist will think ‘no matter which one I choose, some will think I’m wrong.’ And a skeptic would think ‘I don’t believe anyone really cares about these issues, and so it doesn’t make any difference which one I choose.’
The skeptics were mostly right, at least for much of the history of the English language, as well as for hundreds of years insurance And ensure are simply spelling variations and there is not much difference between them Theatre And Theatre. It is not uncommon to see them used in the same way, even in the same sentence.
Such an intro, while it can guarantee success, does not necessarily guarantee a quick or excellent one, and for a considerable time his standing is much more appreciated. in the profession versus the general public.— gentlemen’s magazine (London, England), October 1823
However, in the mid-19th century, some people began to feel guilty about this and proposed to give meaning to ensure, insuranceAnd assure in a more orderly manner.
An example of such a difference, when a new word arises, can be found in the word ‘ensure’, previously spelled nonchalantly as ‘ensure’ and ‘insure;’ whereas, at present, the second method properly refers to the payment of a periodic sum throughout life, taking into account a larger sum paid to the loved one upon death; a person doing this is said to ‘guarantee’ his life; but to ‘make sure’ his life is admittedly beyond the capacity of any man….and here we may remark, by passers-bythat the words ‘guarantee’ and ‘guarantee’ are completely incorrect when applied to life or fire insurance.— Chambers . MagazineNovember 23, 1867
We do not propose any innovation, except to limit the meaning of ensure And insurance, ensure And peethat each of these words in Because will become a separate word, instead of as it is now a different spelling.— Benjamin Drew, Pens and assorted1871
Many user manuals have recommended limited use insurance to financial and recruitment matters ensure generally used when you mean “to make sure, to be sure, or to be safe.” And we usually do this; when examining things that we insurance they tend to be more things than can be assigned some returnable value: cars, houses, ourselves. Things that we ensureon the other hand, more often than not accountability, control and results. Assure is distinguished from the two in that it can have the specific meaning of removing doubt (or attempting) from someone’s mind.
For the most part, we seem to have little difficulty attributing these words to their now commonly accepted uses. It is still quite common to find one used in a context where another might be required.
The bill’s vital signs are declining, but there’s still evidence of brain activity. The action of the Senate can ensure that the debate will come to an end.— Richard Halicks, Kristina Torres, and Chris Joyner, Atlanta Journal-ConstitutionMarch 24, 2013
With just twenty minutes to question a busy star about to head to the airport, the journalist assured me she’d give me “more in twenty minutes than many other actors would do in two hours.” .”—Richard Porton, film (New York, NY), Spring 2007
The creative team assures me that the stunt will be done under close supervision, but when you know there’s no turning back in case anything goes wrong, the process leaves you vulnerable.— Hindustan Times (New Delhi, Ind.), July 31, 2017
If you still feel uncomfortable and itchy when trying to decide if it’s right assure your spouse that you will ensure that the new job will leave you insured, You can rest. Even in the harsh and strict English-speaking world, if you choose the wrong word here it is a lesser sin than death.
Categories: Usage Notes
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
