different between easy vs sure

English

Alternative forms

• aisy (dialectal, archaic)
• easie (obsolete)
• eazy (eye dialect)
• EZ (abbreviation, US, informal)

Etymology

From Middle English eesy, esy, partly from Middle English ese (“ease”) + -y, equivalent to ease +? -y, and partly from Old French aisié (“eased, at ease, at leisure”), past participle of aisier (“to put at ease”), from aise (“empty space, elbow room, opportunity”), of uncertain origin. See ease. Merged with Middle English ethe, eathe (“easy”), from Old English ?eþe, from Proto-Germanic *auþuz, from Proto-Indo-European *aut- (“empty, lonely”). Compare also Old Saxon ?þi, Old High German ?di, Old Norse auðr, all meaning "easy, vacant, empty." More at ease, eath.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?i?zi/, /?i?z?/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?izi/
• Rhymes: -i?zi

Adjective

easy (comparative easier or more easy, superlative easiest or most easy)

1. (now rare except in certain expressions) Comfortable; at ease.

2. Requiring little skill or effort.

3. Causing ease; giving comfort, or freedom from care or labour.

   Rich people live in easy circumstances.

   an easy chair

4. Free from constraint, harshness, or formality; unconstrained; smooth.

   easy manners; an easy style
5. (informal, derogatory, of a woman) Consenting readily to sex.

6. Not making resistance or showing unwillingness; tractable; yielding; compliant.

   • He gain'd their easy hearts.
7. (finance, dated) Not straitened as to money matters; opposed to tight.

   The market is easy.

Synonyms

• (comfortable): relaxed, relaxing
• (not difficult): light, eath
• (consenting readily to sex): fast
• (requiring little skill or effort): soft, trivial
• See also Thesaurus:easy

Antonyms

• (comfortable, at ease): uneasy, anxious
• (requiring little skill or effort): difficult, hard, uneasy, uneath, challenging

Derived terms

Related terms

• ease

Descendants

• ? Faroese: isi
• ? Finnish: iisi

Translations

Adverb

easy (comparative easier, superlative easiest)

1. In a relaxed or casual manner.

2. In a manner without strictness or harshness.

3. Used an intensifier for large magnitudes.

4. Not difficult, not hard. (Can we add an example for this sense?)

Derived terms

• breathe easy

Noun

easy (plural easies)

1. Something that is easy

Verb

easy (third-person singular simple present easies, present participle easying, simple past and past participle easied)

1. (rowing) Synonym of easy-oar

Anagrams

• Ayes, Saye, Seay, ayes, eyas, saye, yaes, yeas

Middle English

Adjective

easy

1. Alternative form of esy

Adverb

easy

1. Alternative form of esy

English

Alternative forms

• sho
• sho'

Etymology

From Middle English sure, seur, sur, from Middle French sur or Old French seür, from Latin s?c?rus (“secure”, literally “carefree”), from s?- (“apart”) + c?ra (“care”) (compare Old English orsorg (“carefree”), from or- (“without”) + sorg (“care”)). See cure. Doublet of secure and the now obsolete or dialectal sicker (“certain, safe”).

Displaced native Middle English wis, iwis (“certain, sure”) (from Old English ?ewis, ?ewiss (“certain, sure”)), Middle English siker (“sure, secure”) (from Old English sicor (“secure, sure”)) with which was cognate.

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /???/, /???/, /???/
• Rhymes: -??(r), -??(r)
• (General Australian, General New Zealand) IPA^(key): /?o?/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /???/, /???/, /??/
• (Canada) IPA^(key): /???/, /??/
• (obsolete) IPA^(key): /sj???/, /sju??/, /s????/
• Homophones: shaw, Shaw (in non-rhotic dialects with the horse-hoarse merger), shore (with the cure-force merger), show (in non-rhotic with the dough-door merger)

Adjective

sure (comparative surer, superlative surest)

1. Physically secure and certain, non-failing, reliable.

2. Certain in one's knowledge or belief.

   She is sure of herself.

   He was sure of being a finalist.

   They weren't sure who would attend.

   You seemed sure that the car was his.
3. (followed by a to infinitive) Certain to act or be a specified way.

4. (obsolete) Free from danger; safe; secure.
5. (obsolete) Betrothed; engaged to marry.
   • c. 1513-1518 (probably date written, published after 1535) Thomas More, History of King Richard III

     The king was sure to Dame Elizabeth Lucy, and her husband before God.

   • 1632, Richard Brome, The Northern Lass

     I presum'd […] [that] you had been sure, as fast as faith could bind you, man and wife.

Synonyms

• (secure and steadfast): certain, failsafe, reliable, sicker
• (steadfast in one's knowledge or belief): certain, positive, wis

Derived terms

• for sure
• sure as hell
• surely
• sure up

Pages starting with “sure”.

Descendants

• ?? Irish: siúráil
• ? Welsh: siwr

Translations

Adverb

sure (comparative more sure, superlative most sure)

1. (modal adverb) Without doubt, certainly.

   Sure he's coming! Why wouldn't he?

   "Did you kill that bear yourself?" ?"I sure did!"

   • 1802, Charles Lamb, John Woodvil

     These high and gusty relishes of life, sure,
     Have no allayings of mortality in them.

Usage notes

• Often proscribed in favor of surely. May be informal.

Interjection

sure

1. Yes, expressing noncommittal agreement or consent.

2. Yes; of course.

3. You're welcome; polite response to being thanked.

Synonyms

• (noncommittal yes): OK, yes

Translations

References

• 1996, T.F. Hoad, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Etymology, Oxford University Press, ?ISBN

Anagrams

• ERUs, Ersu, Reus, Rues, Ruse, US'er, rues, ruse, suer, ures, user

Danish

Adjective

sure

1. inflection of sur:
   1. definite singular
   2. plural

Finnish

Verb

sure

1. Indicative present connegative form of surra.
2. Second-person singular imperative present form of surra.
3. Second-person singular imperative present connegative form of surra.

Anagrams

• resu, seur.

French

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -y?

Adjective

sure

1. feminine singular of sur

Adjective

sure

1. Alternative spelling of sûre

Anagrams

• rues
• ruse, rusé
• suer
• user

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old French seür, from Latin s?c?rus. Doublet of siker.

Alternative forms

• sur, seur, seure, sewre, sewr, sewere, suer, suere, soure, suir, sere, sore

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /s?u?r/, /siu?r/, /su?r/

Adjective

sure (comparative seurer)

1. safe, protected (not dangerous or harmful)
2. fortified, well-defended, protected; especially religiously
3. sure, certain, confirmed
4. sure-minded (certain of one's intent)
5. reliable, of good quality
6. sound, sturdy, hardy

Derived terms

• surely
• surement
• suren
• surenes
• surete

Descendants

• English: sure
  • ?? Irish: siúráil
  • ? Welsh: siwr
• Scots: shuir

References

• “seur, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-21.

Adverb

sure

1. sure, surely, with no doubt or uncertainty
2. entirely, wholly, fully
3. While protecting something, with protection
4. With a tight grasp or grip

Descendants

• English: sure
• Scots: shuir

References

• “seur, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-21.

Etymology 2

Verb

sure

1. Alternative form of suren

Etymology 3

Noun

sure

1. Alternative form of sire

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From Arabic ??????? (s?ra, “chapter of the Qur'an”).

Alternative forms

• sura

Noun

sure m (definite singular suren, indefinite plural surer, definite plural surene)

1. (Islam) a sura (any of the 114 chapters of the Qur'an)

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the main entry.

Adjective

sure

1. definite singular of sur
2. plural of sur

References

• “sure” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
• “sure” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).

Anagrams

• ruse, suer, ures

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology 1

From Arabic ??????? (s?ra, “chapter of the Qur'an”).

Alternative forms

• sura

Noun

sure m (definite singular suren, indefinite plural surar, definite plural surane)

1. (Islam) a sura (any of the 114 chapters of the Qur'an)

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the main entry.

Adjective

sure

1. definite singular of sur
2. plural of sur

References

• “sure” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Anagrams

• ruse, suer

Old English

Etymology

From Germanic, related to s?r (“sour”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?su?.re/

Noun

s?re f

1. sorrel

Pali

Alternative forms

Noun

sure

1. vocative singular of sur? (“a class of liquor”)

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?sure/

Adjective

sure

1. inflection of sur:
   1. genitive/dative feminine singular
   2. nominative/accusative/genitive/dative feminine/neuter plural

Swedish

Adjective

sure

1. absolute definite natural masculine form of sur.

Turkish

Etymology

From Arabic ??????? (s?ra).

Noun

sure (definite accusative sureyi, plural sureler)

1. sura

Declension