certain

American  

[sur-tn] / ˈsɜr tn /

adjective

1. free from doubt or reservation; confident; sure.

   I am certain he will come.

   Synonyms:

   satisfied

2. destined; sure to happen (usually followed by an infinitive).

   He is certain to be there.

3. inevitable; bound to come.

   They realized then that war was certain.

4. established as true or sure; unquestionable; indisputable.

   It is certain that he tried.

   Synonyms:

   clear, plain, obvious, incontrovertible, irrefutable, incontestable, indubitable

5. fixed; agreed upon; settled.

   on a certain day; for a certain amount.

   Synonyms:

   determined

6. definite or particular, but not named or specified.

   A certain person phoned. He had a certain charm.

7. that may be depended on; trustworthy; unfailing; reliable.

   His aim was certain.

8. some though not much.

   a certain reluctance.

9. Obsolete. steadfast.

---

pronoun

1. certain ones.

   Certain of the members declined the invitation.

idioms

1. for certain, without a doubt; surely.

   I know for certain that I have seen that face before.

certain British  

/ ˈsɜːtən /

adjective

1. (postpositive) positive and confident about the truth of something; convinced

   I am certain that he wrote a book

2. (usually postpositive) definitely known

   it is certain that they were on the bus

3. (usually postpositive) sure; bound; destined

   he was certain to fail

4. decided or settled upon; fixed

   the date is already certain for the invasion

5. unfailing; reliable

   his judgment is certain

6. moderate or minimum

   to a certain extent

7. to ensure (that one will get something); confirm

---

adverb

1. definitely; without a doubt

   he will win for certain

determiner

1. 1. known but not specified or named

      certain people may doubt this

   2. ( as pronoun; functioning as plural )

      certain of the members have not paid their subscriptions

2. named but not known

   he had written to a certain Mrs Smith

certain More Idioms  

1. see for certain.

---

Usage

What are other ways to say certain? Someone who is certain of something is free from doubt or reservation about it. How is certain different from sure, confident, and positive? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Etymology

Origin of certain

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old French, from Vulgar Latin certānus (unrecorded), from Latin cert(us) “sure, settled” (adjective use of past participle of cernere “to decide, separate, sift”) + -ānus -an

Example Sentences

Earlier this week, China Daily, a state-run outlet, reported that China was considering tightening export permit reviews for certain rare-earth products to Japan.

From The Wall Street Journal

It’s levied annually by individual cantons on all residents, at rates reaching up to about 1% of net worth, after deductions and exclusions for certain categories of assets.

From Los Angeles Times

"What music in London has been missing for a long time is vulnerability, because I think a lot of us are trying so hard to come across a certain way," he told Kids Take Over.

From BBC

“If it falls down below a certain increment, we have to pause projects,” said J.R.

From The Wall Street Journal

Tesla shareholders in November approved giving Chief Executive Elon Musk $1 trillion in Tesla stock if he hits certain milestones over the next decade.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• absolute
• clear
• definite
• genuine
• positive
• real
• safe
• sure
• true
• undeniable