procure
verb
J. K. RowlingThe New York PostJacqueline Martis
Did you know?
Distinctive Meanings of Procure
Procure, like many other English words, has a split personality. On the one hand, it may carry a perfectly benign meaning, such as "to obtain" (“she procured supplies”) or "to bring about" (“the settlement was successfully procured”). On the other hand, it has long been used in the specific sense of obtaining someone for, or bringing about, sexually promiscuous purposes. In this regard it is similar to the word pander, which entered the English language with the innocent meaning “a go-between in love intrigues” (the word comes from the name Pandare, a character in Chaucer’s poem Troilus and Criseyde who facilitates the affair between the titular characters), and soon after took on the meaning “pimp.”
Synonyms
Examples of procure in a Sentence
Daniel Eisenberg, Time, 30 June 2003
He was stationed down in South Carolina about a year when he became engaged to an Irish Catholic girl whose father, a marine major and a one-time Purdue football coach, had procured him the cushy job as drill instructor in order to keep him at Parris Island to play ball.
—Philip Roth, American Pastoral, 1997
Unlike an agent, whose chief task is to procure acting roles and handle the legal negotiations of an actor's contract, a personal manager's influence is more pervasive …
—Nikki Grimes, Essence, March 1995
a reputation for integrity and incorruptibility that has procured for him the universal respect and admiration of his colleagues
Erik Ortiz, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2024
Gigi is the proprietor of the family shop, stocked with expensive bags and dresses she’s procured through international business connections, its walls adorned with incongruous revolutionary iconography.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2024
And across the evolutionary tree, different eukaryotes have evolved or procured additional organelles that assemble proteins, store water, turn sunlight into energy, digest biomolecules, get rid of waste, and more.
—Quanta Magazine, 28 Oct. 2024
Her father is facing prison unless a large sum of money can be procured within three days.
—Tomas Weber, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for procure 
Dictionary Entries Near procure
Cite this Entry
“Procure.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/procure. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
procure
verb
Legal Definition
procure
transitive verb
Share