authenticate

American  

[aw-then-ti-keyt] / ɔˈθɛn tɪˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

• authenticates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• authenticated,
  past participle,  past
• authenticating
  present participle

1. to establish as genuine.

   Synonyms:

   substantiate, validate, confirm

2. to establish the authorship or origin of conclusively or unquestionably, chiefly by the techniques of scholarship.

   to authenticate a painting.

3. to make authoritative or valid.

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authenticate British  

/ ɔːˈθɛntɪˌkeɪt /

verb

1. to establish as genuine or valid

2. to give authority or legal validity to

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• authentication
  noun
• authenticator
  noun
• nonauthentication
  noun
• reauthenticate
  verb (used with object)
• authenticatable
  adjective
• nonauthenticated
  adjective
• self-authenticating
  adjective
• unauthenticated
  adjective
• well-authenticated
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• authenticating
  present
• authenticated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• authenticate
  simple
• authenticates
  simple
• have authenticated
  perfect
• has authenticated
  perfect
• am authenticating
  progressive
• are authenticating
  progressive
• is authenticating
  progressive
• have been authenticating
  perfect progressive
• has been authenticating
  perfect progressive

Past

• authenticated
  simple
• had authenticated
  perfect
• was authenticating
  progressive
• were authenticating
  progressive
• had been authenticating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will authenticate
  simple
• will have authenticated
  perfect
• will be authenticating
  progressive
• will have been authenticating
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of authenticate

First recorded in 1565–75; from Medieval Latin authenticātus “made authentic” (past participle of authenticāre ). See authentic, -ate ¹

Explanation

When you authenticate something, you establish that it’s the real thing. If you authenticate a painting, for example, you’re sure that it's an original work, not a copy. The verb authenticate came into English in the seventeenth century by way of the Latin word authenticat-, meaning “established as valid.” You’ve probably heard it to mean that a valuable item, like a diamond or a rare vase, is genuine. But not everything that has to be authenticated is worth a lot of money. For example, experts authenticate evidence in an investigation and you authenticate your identity to gain access to your email account.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

authenticate authenticates authenticated authenticating

"In this study we show how to authenticate a biomarker, verifying that a signal truly comes from life rather than contamination or non-biological chemistry," Shawar adds.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 27, 2026

Companies like Beckett Grading Services and Professional Sports Authenticator, or PSA, which authenticate and grade the quality of collectible sports cards, now do the same with Pokemon cards.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 23, 2026

AFP was not immediately able to authenticate these soundbites.

From Barron's ● Jan. 2, 2026

Then I scan my fingerprint on a remote mounted next to my porcelain throne, which allows multiple people to authenticate their personal sessions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2025

Geri explained that he needed the director of the Uffizi to authenticate the painting.

From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day

One of those companies was Quest, the maker of OneLogin software that authenticates employees logging into their work platforms.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026

Although a fantastically informative dive that also authenticates much of the movie’s narrative, I do question a serious expose about Oppenheimer using Bill Nye as a science authority source.

From Washington Times ● Dec. 7, 2023

For nearly two decades Banksy has remained anonymous with the help of nondisclosure agreements, trademark law and a team that authenticates his work.

From New York Times ● Nov. 12, 2022

“The more you can see someone like yourself on television, it authenticates who you are. The more you can say, ‘I could be that too.’

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2022

As registrar the trust company authenticates certificates of stock and bonds in order to prevent an over-issue, and to reduce the chance of loss or theft.

From Readings in Money and Banking Selected and Adapted by Chester Arthur Phillips

Around 15 of such hats have been fully authenticated, most of them now held in museum collections, said Parich.

From Barron's ● Mar. 26, 2026

The next day, the open-source research outfit Bellingcat said it had authenticated a video showing a Tomahawk missile strike next to the school in Minab.

From Salon ● Mar. 11, 2026

A long lost painting by Rembrandt has been rediscovered and authenticated by experts, after its whereabouts were unknown for decades.

From BBC ● Mar. 2, 2026

“But it lacks a large-scale authenticated consumer network, consumer brand and the data flywheel that a two-sided network could provide.”

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 24, 2026

I kept my hunch a secret but had the manuscript authenticated by an expert.

From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

This technology could potentially be applied to authenticating wine, perfumes or other luxury goods, says Liu of Ainos, which trained its e-nose to differentiate varieties of coffee beans.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026

The researchers say their dual-mode, ambient and polarized light film has potential value for a wide variety of high-level security applications, like seals for authenticating paper money or ID badges.

From Science Daily ● May 30, 2024

Headed into the 2024 election, every American needs to up to the challenge of authenticating the news that they use to inform how they vote.

From Salon ● May 21, 2024

“Above all else though, the program does not allow for authenticating balls in the stands because it is a chain-of-custody and witness-based program.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2024

At their request, he wrote letters to the Great Khan, authenticating the causes of their failure to fulfil the wishes of the Khan in the matter of obtaining the missionaries whom he desired.

From Great Men and Famous Women. Vol. 5 A series of pen and pencil sketches of the lives of more than 200 of the most prominent personages in History by Charles F. (Charles Francis) Horne

Related Words

• attest
• corroborate
• substantiate
• validate
• verify