What does CERTAIN mean?

Definitions for CERTAIN
ˈsɜr tncer·tain

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word CERTAIN.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. certain(a)adjective

    definite but not specified or identified

    "set aside a certain sum each week"; "to a certain degree"; "certain breeds do not make good pets"; "certain members have not paid their dues"; "a certain popular teacher"; "a certain Mrs. Jones"

  2. certain(p), sureadjective

    having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and assured

    "felt certain of success"; "was sure (or certain) she had seen it"; "was very sure in his beliefs"; "sure of her friends"

  3. certain(p)adjective

    established beyond doubt or question; definitely known

    "what is certain is that every effect must have a cause"; "it is certain that they were on the bus"; "his fate is certain"; "the date for the invasion is certain"

  4. certain, sureadjective

    certain to occur; destined or inevitable

    "he was certain to fail"; "his fate is certain"; "In this life nothing is certain but death and taxes"- Benjamin Franklin; "he faced certain death"; "sudden but sure regret"; "he is sure to win"

  5. sealed, certainadjective

    established irrevocably

    "his fate is sealed"

  6. certain, sureadjective

    reliable in operation or effect

    "a quick and certain remedy"; "a sure way to distinguish the two"; "wood dust is a sure sign of termites"

  7. certain, sureadjective

    exercising or taking care great enough to bring assurance

    "be certain to disconnect the iron when you are through"; "be sure to lock the doors"

Wiktionary

  1. certainadjective

    Having been determined but unspecified. The quality of some particular subject or object which is known by the speaker to have been specifically singled out among similar entities of its class.

    I was certain of my decision.

  2. certainadjective

    Sure, positive, not doubting.

    I was certain of my decision.

  3. Etymology: From certain, certein, from certain, from unattested form, extended form of certus, of the same origin as cretus, past participle of cernere. Displaced native wis, iwis (from gewiss ġewis, ġewiss and alternative spelling sertane

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. CERTAINadjective

    Etymology: certus, Lat.

    This it is equally certain of, whether these ideas be more or less general. John Locke.

    Those things are certain among men, which cannot be denied, without obstinacy and folly. John Tillotson.

    However I with thee have fix’d my lot,
    Certain to undergo like doom of death,
    Consort with thee. John Milton, Par. Lost, b. ix. l. 953.

    How bad soever this fashion may justly be accounted, certain of the same countrymen do pass far beyond it. Richard Carew, Survey.

    I got them in my country’s service, when
    Some certain of your brethren roar’d, and ran
    From noise of our own drums. William Shakespeare, Coriolanus.

    Let there be certain leather bags made of several bignesses, which, for the matter of them, should be tractable. John Wilkins.

    This form before Alcyone present,
    To make her certain of the sad event. Dryden.

ChatGPT

  1. certain

    An adjective used to describe something that is definite, absolute, or without doubt. It suggests that there is no uncertainty or ambiguity about the subject or situation at hand.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Certainadjective

    assured in mind; having no doubts; free from suspicions concerning

  2. Certainadjective

    determined; resolved; -- used with an infinitive

  3. Certainadjective

    not to be doubted or denied; established as a fact

  4. Certainadjective

    actually existing; sure to happen; inevitable

  5. Certainadjective

    unfailing; infallible

  6. Certainadjective

    fixed or stated; regular; determinate

  7. Certainadjective

    not specifically named; indeterminate; indefinite; one or some; -- sometimes used independenty as a noun, and meaning certain persons

  8. Certainnoun

    certainty

  9. Certainnoun

    a certain number or quantity

  10. Certainadverb

    certainly

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Certain

    sėr′tān, or sėr′tin, adj. sure: not to be doubted: resolved: fixed: regular: inevitable: some: one.—advs. Cer′tainly, (Scot.) Cer′ty, Cer′tie.—ns. Cer′titude, Cer′tainty.—'A certain person,' implying some degree of contempt; A lady of a certain age, of an age best not stated accurately—at least no longer young.—For certain, assuredly.—Moral certainty, a conviction so justifiable that one is morally entitled to act on it. [O. Fr.,—L. certuscern-ĕre, to decide.]

Editors Contribution

  1. certain

    To feel and know with our conscience, consciousness, heart, mind, subconscious, spirit and soul.

    They both are certain they are getting married to each other.


    Submitted by MaryC on February 22, 2020  

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. CERTAIN

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Certain is ranked #26086 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Certain surname appeared 939 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Certain.

    74.5% or 700 total occurrences were White.
    15.4% or 145 total occurrences were Black.
    5.5% or 52 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    2.5% or 24 total occurrences were of two or more races.
    1% or 10 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.
    0.8% or 8 total occurrences were Asian.

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'CERTAIN' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #419

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'CERTAIN' in Written Corpus Frequency: #518

  3. Adjectives Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'CERTAIN' in Adjectives Frequency: #45

Anagrams for CERTAIN »

  1. tacrine

  2. tercian

  3. centiar

  4. nacrite

  5. nectria

  6. citrean

How to pronounce CERTAIN?

How to say CERTAIN in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of CERTAIN in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of CERTAIN in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of CERTAIN in a Sentence

  1. Pavlo Kyrylenko:

    We are now witnessing the accumulation of manpower, heavy armored vehicles and artillery in the direction of Sloviansk, the enemy is using its well-known tactics, trying to move closer to our line of defense in order to fire artillery at the cities. Enemy artillery is already reaching certain parts of Sloviansk. This is another confirmation that people should evacuate.

  2. Alexis Charles Henri Clrel de Tocqueville:

    In the South where slavery still exists, the Negroes are less carefully kept apart they sometimes share the labors and the recreations of the whites the whites consent to intermix with them to a certain extent, and although legislation treats them more harshly, the habits of the people are more tolerant and compassionate.

  3. Steven Mnuchin:

    We have actually now agreed on the spending numbers for both years, we're now working on offsets and certain structural issues and as part of this, we've agreed that there would be a long-term debt ceiling extension.

  4. Bunsei Kure:

    We don't want to come under the wing of a certain manufacturer, we want to be held by a wide range of investors.

  5. Michael Geary:

    What’s unique about what is going on in certain countries is the rise of populist leaders on both the extreme-right and the extreme-left.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

CERTAIN#1#1100#10000

Translations for CERTAIN

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

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"CERTAIN." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/CERTAIN>.

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