Adjacent Words

Security definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SECU'RITY, n. [L. securitas.]
1. Protection; effectual defense or saftey from danger of any kind; as a chain of forts erected for the security of the frontiers.
2. That which protects or guards from danger. A navy constitutes the security of Great Britain from invasion.
3. Freedom from fear or apprehension; confidence of safety; whence, negligence in providing means of defense. Security is dangerous, for it exposes men to attack when unprepared. Security in sin is the worst condition of the sinner.
4. Safety; certainty. We have no security for peace with Algiers, but the dread of our navy.
5. Anything given or deposited to secure the payment of a debt, or the performance of a contract; as a bond with surety, a mortgage, the indorsement of a responsible man, a pledge, etc.
6. Something given or done to secure peace or good behavior. Violent and dangerous men are obliged to give security for their good behavior, or for keeping the peace. This security
in being bound with one or more sureties in a recognizance to the king or state.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the state of being free from danger or injury; "we support the armed services in the name of national security" [ant: insecurity]
2: defense against financial failure; financial independence; "his pension gave him security in his old age"; "insurance provided protection against loss of wages due to illness" [syn: security, protection]
3: freedom from anxiety or fear; "the watch dog gave her a feeling of security"
4: a formal declaration that documents a fact of relevance to finance and investment; the holder has a right to receive interest or dividends; "he held several valuable securities" [syn: security, certificate]
5: property that your creditor can claim in case you default on your obligation; "bankers are reluctant to lend without good security" [syn: security, surety]
6: a department responsible for the security of the institution's property and workers; "the head of security was a former policeman" [syn: security, security department]
7: a guarantee that an obligation will be met [syn: security, surety]
8: an electrical device that sets off an alarm when someone tries to break in [syn: security system, security measure, security]
9: measures taken as a precaution against theft or espionage or sabotage etc.; "military security has been stepped up since the recent uprising" [syn: security, security measures]

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural -ties) Date: 15th century 1. the quality or state of being secure: as a. freedom from danger ; safety b. freedom from fear or anxiety c. freedom from the prospect of being laid off <job security> 2. a. something given, deposited, or pledged to make certain the fulfillment of an obligation b. surety 3. an instrument of investment in the form of a document (as a stock certificate or bond) providing evidence of its ownership 4. a. something that secures ; protection b. (1) measures taken to guard against espionage or sabotage, crime, attack, or escape (2) an organization or department whose task is security

U.S. Military Dictionary

1. Measures taken by a military unit, activity, or installation to protect itself against all acts designed to, or which may, impair its effectiveness. (JP 3-10) 2. A condition that results from the establishment and maintenance of protective measures that ensure a state of inviolability from hostile acts or influences. (JP 3-10) 3. With respect to classified matter, the condition that prevents unauthorized persons from having access to official information that is safeguarded in the interests of national security. (JP 2-0) See also national security.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. -ies) 1 a secure condition or feeling. 2 a thing that guards or guarantees. 3 a the safety of a State, company, etc., against espionage, theft, or other danger. b an organization for ensuring this. 4 a thing deposited or pledged as a guarantee of the fulfilment of an undertaking or the payment of a loan, to be forfeited in case of default. 5 (often in pl.) a certificate attesting credit or the ownership of stock, bonds, etc. Phrases and idioms: on security of using as a guarantee. security blanket 1 an official sanction on information in the interest of security. 2 a blanket or other familiar object given as a comfort to a child. Security Council a permanent body of the United Nations seeking to maintain peace and security. security guard a person employed to protect the security of buildings, vehicles, etc. security risk a person whose presence may threaten security. Etymology: ME f. OF securité or L securitas (as SECURE)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Security Se*cu"ri*ty, n.; pl. Securities. [L. securitas: cf. F. s['e]curit['e]. See Secure, and cf. Surety.] 1. The condition or quality of being secure; secureness. Specifically: (a) Freedom from apprehension, anxiety, or care; confidence of power of safety; hence, assurance; certainty. His trembling hand had lost the ease, Which marks security to please. --Sir W. Scott. (b) Hence, carelessness; negligence; heedlessness. He means, my lord, that we are too remiss, Whilst Bolingbroke, through our security, Grows strong and great in substance and in power. --Shak. (c) Freedom from risk; safety. Give up yourself merely to chance and hazard, From firm security. --Shak. Some . . . alleged that we should have no security for our trade. --Swift. 2. That which secures or makes safe; protection; guard; defense. Specifically: (a) Something given, deposited, or pledged, to make certain the fulfillment of an obligation, the performance of a contract, the payment of a debt, or the like; surety; pledge. Those who lent him money lent it on no security but his bare word. --Macaulay. (b) One who becomes surety for another, or engages himself for the performance of another's obligation. 3. An evidence of debt or of property, as a bond, a certificate of stock, etc.; as, government securities. Syn: Protection; defense; guard; shelter; safety; certainty; ease; assurance; carelessness; confidence; surety; pledge; bail.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(securities) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. Security refers to all the measures that are taken to protect a place, or to ensure that only people with permission enter it or leave it. They are now under a great deal of pressure to tighten their airport security... Strict security measures are in force in the capital. N-UNCOUNT: with supp, oft N n 2. A feeling of security is a feeling of being safe and free from worry. He loves the security of a happy home life... N-UNCOUNT: usu with supp, oft N of n • If something gives you a false sense of security, it makes you believe that you are safe when you are not. Wearing helmets gave cyclists a false sense of security and encouraged them to take risks. PHRASE: PHR after v 3. If something is security for a loan, you promise to give that thing to the person who lends you money, if you fail to pay the money back. (BUSINESS) The central bank will provide special loans, and the banks will pledge the land as security. = collateral 4. Securities are stocks, shares, bonds, or other certificates that you buy in order to earn regular interest from them or to sell them later for a profit. (BUSINESS) ...US government securities and bonds. N-PLURAL 5. see also social security

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Safety. 2. Protection, safeguard, defence, shelter, guard, bulwark, palladium. 3. Pledge, pawn, deposit, surety, stake, guarantee, warranty, bond. 4. Carelessness, heedlessness, over-confidence, negligence. 5. Certainty, assuredness, confidence, ease, assurance.

Moby Thesaurus

Easy Street, aegis, affluence, aplomb, armament, armor, arrogance, aspiration, assumption, assurance, assured faith, assuredness, asylum, authenticity, authoritativeness, bail, balance, balanced personality, bamboo curtain, barrier of secrecy, bed of roses, belief, blackout, bond, calculability, care, censorship, certainty, certification, certitude, cheerful expectation, clear sailing, clover, cocksureness, collateral, comfort, confidence, confidentness, constancy, conviction, cool, courage, curtain, custodianship, custody, dependability, dependence, deposit, desire, doomed hope, earnest, ease, easy circumstances, equilibrium, expectation, fair prospect, faith, faithworthiness, fastness, felicity, fervent hope, firmness, fleshpots, gage, good cheer, good hope, gracious life, gracious living, great expectations, guarantee, guaranty, guard, guarding, happiness, harmlessness, high hopes, homeostasis, hope, hopeful prognosis, hopefulness, hopes, hoping, hoping against hope, hubris, hush-up, immunity, imperturbability, insurance, invariability, invincibility, invulnerability, iron curtain, ironbound security, lap of luxury, life of ease, loaves and fishes, luxury, nerve, oath of secrecy, official secrecy, overconfidence, oversureness, overweening, overweeningness, pall, pawn, pledge, poise, pomposity, positiveness, prayerful hope, predictability, presumption, pride, promise, prospect, prospects, prosperity, prosperousness, protection, refuge, reliability, reliance, repression, risklessness, rootedness, safeguard, safeguarding, safeness, safety, sanctuary, sang-froid, sanguine expectation, seal of secrecy, secureness, self-assurance, self-confidence, self-importance, self-reliance, settled belief, shelter, shield, smothering, solidity, soundness, stability, stable equilibrium, stable state, stableness, staunchness, steadfastness, steadiness, steady nerves, steady state, stifling, strength, subjective certainty, substantiality, success, suppression, sureness, surety, surveillance, the affluent life, the good life, thriving condition, token, trust, trustworthiness, undeflectability, unerringness, uniformity, unshakable nerves, unshakableness, upward mobility, validity, veil, veil of secrecy, velvet, ward, warrant, warranty, weal, wealth, welfare, well-being, well-grounded hope, wraps