procure

verb, transitive + intransitive pro·cure \ prə-ˈkyu̇r , prō- \

Updated on: 11 Sep 2017

Definition of procure

procured; procuring

1 T :to get possession of (something) :to obtain (something) by particular care and effort

procure a loan

She had managed to procure a hat shaped like a life-size lion's head, which was perched precariously on her head.
—J. K. Rowling

2 T :to bring about or achieve (something) by care and effort

was unable to procure the prisoner's release

3 T/I :to obtain (someone) to be employed for sex (as for an individual or in a house of prostitution)

… accused of acting as a "madam" and "procuring girls" for wealthy sex offender Epstein—claims that she strongly denies.
—The New York Post

No one has been prosecuted … for pimping or procuring …
—Jacqueline Martis

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procurable

play \-ˈkyu̇r-ə-bəl\ adjective

Examples of procure in a Sentence

It was at that encounter in Pakistan that Faris was put in charge of procuring acetylene torches to slice suspension cables, as well as torque tools to bend portions of train track. —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

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.”