Wiktionary

certain

See also: Certain, and cèrtain

English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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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

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Adjective

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certain (comparative more certain or certainer, superlative most certain or certainest)

  1. Sure in one's mind, positive; absolutely confident in the truth of something.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:certain
    I was certain of my decision.
    • 1833, [Frederick Marryat], chapter VIII, in Peter Simple. […], volume III, London: Saunders and Otley, […], published 1834, →OCLC, page 113:
      […] I think, nay, I may say that I'm sartain, we'll have a hurricane afore morning. It's not the first time I've cruised in these latitudes.
  2. Not to be doubted or denied; established as a fact.
    Now that more experiments have been run, the theory is certain and the argument is settled.
  3. Sure to happen, inevitable; assured.
    It is certain that Spain will reach the finals. / Spain is now certain to reach the finals. / Spain is now certain of a place in the finals.
    Bankruptcy is the certain outcome of your constant gambling and lending.
  4. Unfailing; infallible.
    • 1702, Richard Mead, Mechanical Account of Poisons:
      I have often wished, that I knew so certain a remedy in any other disease
  5. Fixed; regular; determinate.
    at certain intervals
  6. 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.
  7. (euphemistic, preceded by "a") Used to denote that the speaker is referring to a specific person or thing that they do not want to name directly, implying that the listener should infer the identity of the referent.
    I would have been here on time, but a certain someone lost the car keys!
  8. (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.
    • 1972, Burton Pasternak, “Kinship”, in Kinship & Community in Two Chinese Villages‎[1], Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, pages 75–76:
      About 140 years ago, for example, a certain Hsü Kuang-ming established an ancestral estate in Wanluan consisting of ten hectares. The trust was specifically set aside to provide for his own worship after death, and access to its profits was to be enjoyed only by his descendants.
  9. (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.
  10. (obsolete) Determined; resolved.
    • 1667, John Milton, “Book VIII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC, lines 952–953:
      However I with thee have fixt my Lot,
      Certain to undergoe like doom […]

Synonyms

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Antonyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Determiner

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certain

  1. Having been determined but not specified.
    Certain people are good at running.

Translations

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Pronoun

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certain

  1. (with of) Unnamed or undescribed members (of).
    Synonym: some
    She mentioned a series of contracts, of which certain are not cited.

Further reading

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Anagrams

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French

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Etymology

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Inherited from Old French certain, from Vulgar Latin unattested form *certānus, extended form of Latin certus (“fixed, resolved, certain”).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /sɛʁ.tɛ̃/, (in laison) /sɛʁ.tɛ.n‿/
  • Audio:(file)

Adjective

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certain (feminine certaine, masculine plural certains, feminine plural certaines)

  1. certain, guaranteed (sure, positive)
    sûr et certain ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)
    une victoire certaine ― a sure victory
    Il est certain qu’il viendra.
    It is certain that he will arrive.
  2. certain (specified, particular)
  3. certain (of indefinite, unknown or simply unmentioned identity, quality or quantity) (prepositive to the noun it modifies, and usually preceded by an indefinite article)
    dans une certaine mesure ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)
    d’un certain âge ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)
    un ’’’certain nombre de ― a certain number of
    une certaine femme ― a certain woman

Derived terms

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Determiner

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certain m (feminine certaine, masculine plural certains, feminine plural certaines)

  1. certain: a determined but unspecified amount of; some

Usage notes

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  • 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[1] (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

References

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  1. ^ “certain”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

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Old French

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Vulgar Latin *certānus, derived from Latin certus.

Adjective

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certain m (oblique and nominative feminine singular certaine)

  1. certain; sure

Declension

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Declension of certain
Number Case Masculine Feminine Neuter
Singular Subject certains certaine certain
Oblique certain certaine certain
Plural Subject certain certaines certain
Oblique certains certaines certain

Synonyms

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Descendants

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  • French: certain
  • → Middle English: certeyn
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