In this installment of Word Knots and the next we’ll focus on two words that are often confused and a third word that’s often used incorrectly, both in written and spoken English.

Our source for this installment is The Dictionary of Disagreeable English by Robert Hartwell Fiske (Chicago: Writer’s Digest Books). This is a great book to browse: I highly recommend it.

From Fiske:

Ensure

Misused for assure.

As Fiske writes (excerpted):

As there is a distinction between the words insure and ensure, so there is between assure and ensure. To assure is to declare confidently; to promise or guarantee. To ensure, to make certain.

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Let’s stick with ensure and assure for now (we’ll look at insure in #36). Here are the most relevant Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary definitions (excerpted):

ensure

transitive verb

1  : to make sure, certain, or safe : guarantee

assure

transitive verb

1 : to make safe (as from risks or against overthrow) 

2 : to give confidence to : reassure, encourage, strengthen

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While the definitions are close, the distinction is indeed there. The easiest way to distinguish between the two is to consider ensure to be a guarantee and consider assure to be a promise.

Let’s look at example of each used correctly.

The railings were installed to ensure that no one would fall off the walkway.

Because there are railings on the walkway, the guide assured us that we’d be safe.

The differences are clear, but one must be careful with both of these words: word choice matters.

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