underwrite
Other forms: underwriting; underwritten; underwrote; underwrites
To underwrite is to insure or promise to be financially responsible in case of loss or damage. An insurance agent can underwrite your renter's insurance policy, which protects you if there's a fire or robbery, for example.
Insurance companies can underwrite, estimating the value of a life or property, and so can large banks — when a bank underwrites a loan, it means they carefully check the borrower's credit history. The word underwrite comes from the Old English underwritan, "write at the foot of," and originally is exactly what underwriters did, signing their names at the bottom of an assessment of risk, promising to pay in case of disaster in exchange for a set amount of money.
-
protect by insurance
-
cover
to take an action to protect against future problems
-
compensate, cover, overcompensate
make up for shortcomings or a feeling of inferiority by exaggerating good qualities
-
cover
-
guarantee financial support of
-
synonyms:
subvent, subvention
- MLA
- APA
- Chicago
Vocabulary lists containing underwrite
To illustrate his thesis that math is the foundation of human progress, Alex Bellos details achievements throughout time and cultures.
With his heir presumed dead, a rich man leaves his fortune to his faithful servants, who soon find that great wealth can be used for good but can also attract cheats and scoundrels. Read the full text here.
Look up underwrite for the last time
Close your vocabulary gaps with personalized learning that focuses on teaching the words you need to know.
