a. [ L. securus; pref. se- without + cura care. See Cure care, and cf. Sure, a. ] 1. Free from fear, care, or anxiety; easy in mind; not feeling suspicion or distrust; confident. [ 1913 Webster ]

But thou, secure of soul, unbent with woes. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Overconfident; incautious; careless; -- in a bad sense. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Confident in opinion; not entertaining, or not having reason to entertain, doubt; certain; sure; -- commonly with of; as, secure of a welcome. [ 1913 Webster ]

Confidence then bore thee on, secure
Either to meet no danger, or to find
Matter of glorious trial. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Not exposed to danger; safe; -- applied to persons and things, and followed by against or from. “Secure from fortune's blows.” Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Safe; undisturbed; easy; sure; certain; assured; confident; careless; heedless; inattentive. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Secured p. pr. & vb. n. Securing. ] 1. To make safe; to relieve from apprehensions of, or exposure to, danger; to guard; to protect. [ 1913 Webster ]

I spread a cloud before the victor's sight,
Sustained the vanquished, and secured his flight. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To put beyond hazard of losing or of not receiving; to make certain; to assure; to insure; -- frequently with against or from, rarely with of; as, to secure a creditor against loss; to secure a debt by a mortgage. [ 1913 Webster ]

It secures its possessor of eternal happiness. T. Dick. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To make fast; to close or confine effectually; to render incapable of getting loose or escaping; as, to secure a prisoner; to secure a door, or the hatches of a ship. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To get possession of; to make one's self secure of; to acquire certainly; as, to secure an estate. [ 1913 Webster ]

Secure arms (Mil.), a command and a position in the manual of arms, used in wet weather, the object being to guard the firearm from becoming wet. The piece is turned with the barrel to the front and grasped by the right hand at the lower band, the muzzle is dropped to the front, and the piece held with the guard under the right arm, the hand supported against the hip, and the thumb on the rammer. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In a secure manner; without fear or apprehension; without danger; safely. [ 1913 Webster ]

His daring foe . . . securely him defied. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The act of securing; protection. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Society condemns the securement in all cases of perpetual protection by means of perpetual imprisonment. C. A. Ives. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The condition or quality of being secure; exemption from fear; want of vigilance; security. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who, or that which, secures. [ 1913 Webster ]