/ ˌgærənˈtiː; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
1.
a firm promise that you will do sth or that sth will happen
SYN assurance :
to give a guarantee of good behaviour
He gave me a guarantee that it would never happen again.
They are demanding certain guarantees before they sign the treaty.
2.
a written promise given by a company that sth you buy will be replaced or repaired without payment if it goes wrong within a particular period
SYN warranty :
We provide a 5-year guarantee against rust.
The watch is still under guarantee .
The television comes with a year's guarantee.
a money-back guarantee
3.
guarantee (of sth) | guarantee (that ... ) something that makes sth else certain to happen :
Career success is no guarantee of happiness.
There's no guarantee that she'll come (= she may not come) .
4.
money or sth valuable that you give or promise to a bank, for example, to make sure that you will do what you have promised :
We had to offer our house as a guarantee when getting the loan.
■ verb
1.
to promise to do sth; to promise sth will happen :
[ vn ]
Basic human rights, including freedom of speech, are now guaranteed.
[ v ( that )]
We cannot guarantee (that) our flights will never be delayed.
[ vnn ]
The ticket will guarantee you free entry.
[ v to inf ]
We guarantee to deliver your goods within a week.
2.
[ vn ] guarantee sth (against sth) to give a written promise to replace or repair a product free if it goes wrong :
This iron is guaranteed for a year against faulty workmanship.
3.
to make sth certain to happen :
[ vn ]
Tonight's victory guarantees the team's place in the final.
[ vnn ]
These days getting a degree doesn't guarantee you a job.
4.
[ v ( that )] to be certain that sth will happen :
You can guarantee (that) the children will start being naughty as soon as they have to go to bed.
5.
to agree to be legally responsible for sth or for doing sth :
[ vn ]
to guarantee a bank loan
[ v to inf ]
to guarantee to pay sb's debts
[ v that ]
I guarantee that he will appear in court.
•
IDIOMS
- be guaranteed to do sth
••
WORD ORIGIN
late 17th cent. (in the sense guarantor ): perhaps from Spanish garante , corresponding to French garant , later influenced by French garantie guaranty.