English Online Dictionary. What means certain? What does certain mean?
English
Alternative forms
- certaine (obsolete)
- certayne (archaic)
- certeine (archaic)
Etymology
From Middle English certeyn, certein, certain, borrowed from Old French certain, from a Vulgar Latin unattested form *certānus, extended form of Latin certus (“fixed, resolved, certain”), of the same origin as cretus, past participle of cernere (“to separate, perceive, decide”). Displaced native Middle English wis, iwis (“certain, sure”) (from Old English ġewiss (“certain, sure”)) and alternative Middle English spelling sertane (“some, certain”).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈsɜːtn̩/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈsɝtn̩/, /ˈsɝʔn̩/
- (Canada) IPA(key): /ˈsɝtən/, /ˈsɝtn̩/, /ˈsɝʔn̩/
- Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)tən
- Hyphenation: cer‧tain
Adjective
certain (comparative more certain or certainer, superlative most certain or certainest)
- Sure in one's mind, positive; absolutely confident in the truth of something.
- Synonyms: see Thesaurus:certain
- Not to be doubted or denied; established as a fact.
- Sure to happen, inevitable; assured.
- Unfailing; infallible.
- Fixed; regular; determinate.
- at certain intervals
- Particular and definite, but unspecified or unnamed; used to introduce someone or something without going into further detail.
- Every wine has a certain distinctive character which sets it apart from all others.
- Each morning, she would see a certain man rush past her window on his way to work.
- (preceded by "a", of a person) Named but not previously mentioned.
- Synonym: one
- Looking inside the cover, they learned that the book had once belonged to a certain R. Jones.
- (preceded by "a", of a person) Used before the name of someone famous that people are expected to know.
- Synonym: one
- Since the last British government to make such a proposal was that of a certain Margaret Thatcher, it might not seem unreasonable.
- (obsolete) Determined; resolved.
Synonyms
- (sure to happen): unavoidable; See also Thesaurus:inevitable
Antonyms
- (not doubting): uncertain
- (sure to happen): impossible, incidental
- (known but not named): particular specific
Derived terms
Translations
Determiner
certain
- Having been determined but not specified.
Translations
Pronoun
certain
- (with of) Unnamed or undescribed members (of).
- Synonym: some
Further reading
- “certain”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
- “certain”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “certain”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
Anagrams
- Cretian, ant rice, anticer, cantier, ceratin, citrean, creatin, crinate, nacrite, tacrine, tercian
French
Etymology
Inherited from Old French certain, from Vulgar Latin unattested form *certānus, extended form of Latin certus (“fixed, resolved, certain”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /sɛʁ.tɛ̃/, (in laison) /sɛʁ.tɛ.n‿/
Adjective
certain (feminine certaine, masculine plural certains, feminine plural certaines)
- certain, for certain, indubitably
- certain (of indefinite, unknown or simply unmentioned identity, quality or quantity) (prepositive to the noun it modifies, and usually preceded by an indefinite article)
- un certain nombre de ― a certain number of
- une certaine femme ― a certain woman
- certain (sure, positive) (postpositive to the modified noun)
- une victoire certaine ― a sure victory
- certain (fixed, determined)
- certain (specified, particular)
Derived terms
Noun
certain m (plural certains)
- certain; certainty
Determiner
certain m (feminine certaine, masculine plural certains, feminine plural certaines)
- certain: a determined but unspecified amount of ; some
Usage notes
- The plurals certains and certaines are generally not used with articles, functioning much like articles themselves. Nevertheless, particularly in circumstantial and objective complements introduced by à (including such compounds as jusqu’à), they are sometimes supported by the indefinite article de — not to be confused with the preposition de:
- à de certaines heures du matin
- par rapport à de certains pays voisins
- s'avancer jusqu'à de certaines limites
- s'attendre à de certaines conditions
Related terms
- certainement
- certitude
- incertain
References
Anagrams
- carient, centrai, cernait, crainte, criante, écriant, encirât, encrait
Old French
Alternative forms
- chertain (Picard)
Etymology
From Vulgar Latin *certānus, derived from Latin certus.
Adjective
certain m (oblique and nominative feminine singular certaine)
- certain; sure
Declension
Synonyms
- seur
Related terms
- cert
Descendants
- French: certain
- → Middle English: certeyn
- English: certain