As*sur"ance (&?;), n. [OE. assuraunce,
F. assurance, fr. assurer. See Assure.]
1. The act of assuring; a declaration tending to
inspire full confidence; that which is designed to give
confidence.
Whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that
he hath raised him from the dead.
Acts xvii. 31.
Assurances of support came pouring in daily.
Macaulay.
2. The state of being assured; firm persuasion;
full confidence or trust; freedom from doubt; certainty.
Let us draw with a true heart in full assurance of
faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience.
Heb. x. 22.
3. Firmness of mind; undoubting, steadiness;
intrepidity; courage; confidence; self-reliance.
Brave men meet danger with assurance.
Knolles.
Conversation with the world will give them knowledge and
assurance.
Locke.
4. Excess of boldness; impudence; audacity; as, his
assurance is intolerable.
5. Betrothal; affiance. [Obs.] Sir P.
Sidney.
6. Insurance; a contract for the payment of a sum
on occasion of a certain event, as loss or death.
&fist; Recently, assurance has been used, in England, in relation
to life contingencies, and insurance in relation to other
contingencies. It is called temporary assurance, in the time within
which the contingent event must happen is limited. See
Insurance.
7. (Law) Any written or other legal evidence
of the conveyance of property; a conveyance; a deed.
&fist; In England, the legal evidences of the conveyance of property are
called the common assurances of the kingdom. Blackstone.
