Unsecured

How to spell unsecured

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce unsecured

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does unsecured mean?

1. adjectiveNot fastened, locked, or otherwise made safe against loss or intrusion.
2. adjectiveOf a loan or debt, not backed by any collateral that the lender can claim.

Unsecured in a sentence

• The back gate was left unsecured overnight and banged in the wind.

• An unsecured loan carries a higher interest rate because the bank has no collateral.

• An unsecured ladder slid down the wall and cracked the window.

• Most credit card balances count as unsecured debt.

Where does unsecured come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word is built on 'secure', which English took in the early 1500s from the Latin securus, meaning 'free from care' or 'safe'. That Latin adjective was itself formed from se- 'without' and cura 'care or concern', so something secure was literally something you need not worry about. The native English prefix 'un-', meaning 'not', was attached to make 'unsecured', describing whatever has not been made safe or has not been pledged as a guarantee. The financial sense, a loan with no collateral standing behind it, grew naturally from the older everyday meaning of something left unfastened or unprotected. Interestingly, the same cura 'care' root gives us 'cure', 'curious', and 'curator', all tied to the idea of taking care of something.

How the word is built

• un- (not)
• secur- (from Latin securus: safe, free from care)
• -ed (adjective/past-participle suffix)