certificate
Americannoun
-
certificates
plural
-
a document serving as evidence or as written testimony, as of status, qualifications, privileges, or the truth of something.
-
a document attesting to the fact that a person has completed an educational course, issued either by an institution not authorized to grant diplomas, or to a student not qualifying for a diploma.
-
Law. a statement, written and signed, which is by law made evidence of the truth of the facts stated, for all or for certain purposes.
-
Finance.
verb (used with object)
-
certificates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
certificated,
past participle, past
-
certificating
present participle
-
to furnish with or authorize by a certificate.
-
to issue an official certificate attesting to the training, aptitude, and qualification of.
to certificate a teacher.
noun
-
an official document attesting the truth of the facts stated, as of birth, marital status, death, health, completion of an academic course, ability to practise a profession, etc
-
short for share certificate
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
certificatesimple
-
certificatessimple
-
have certificatedperfect
-
has certificatedperfect
-
am certificatingprogressive
-
are certificatingprogressive
-
is certificatingprogressive
-
have been certificatingperfect progressive
-
has been certificatingperfect progressive
Past
-
certificatedsimple
-
had certificatedperfect
-
was certificatingprogressive
-
were certificatingprogressive
-
had been certificatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of certificate
1375–1425; late Middle English certificat < Medieval Latin certificātum, noun use of neuter of certificātus certified (past participle of certificāre ), equivalent to certific- ( see certify) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
A certificate is a paper or document that proves some fact. Your most prized possession might be the certificate you got when you became a black belt in karate. Your fastidious friend might need to check the health inspection certificate before she'll agree to eat in a restaurant, and you'll need a copy of your birth certificate before you can apply for a passport. A certificate certifies or documents the fact that you are who you say you are, that you're licensed to drive, or authorized to practice dentistry, for example. You can trace the word certificate back to the Latin certus, "sure, fixed, settled."
Vocabulary lists containing certificate
The Judicial Branch
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Week 3 Spelling
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"CLEP Financial Accounting," Vocabulary from Chapter 4
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He checked her phone and found details of her former life, her birth certificate and former marriage documents.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
The city of Newark has been pressing for The GEO Group to permit a fire inspection and obtain a certificate of occupancy for the sprawling private jail.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
And in a setup straight out of a whodunit: Meet Caltech’s four-member “fraud squad,” which vets every admitted student’s application—scrutinizing everything from science-fair certificate fonts to transcript signatures to combat AI-fueled cheating.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
“If your family is homeless and sleeping in your car, you’re not really focused on where’s my birth certificate, where’s my documentation.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
“You know what Sairy said? She said she had to get my birth certificate, too, and I told her I didn’t have any birth certificate.”
From "Ruby Holler" by Sharon Creech
For the 2025 calendar year, 20,685 deaths were attributed across the nation to COVID-19 on death certificates, according to the CDC.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
By then, the San Francisco family will have had their birth certificates notarized, had European officials record their fingerprints and transferred half a million Euros into an international investment fund.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
The team checks transcripts, certificates and signatures, and uses a video-interview program to verify applicants’ research claims.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
The pair also faked certificates of analysis, the documents that prove the safety and quality of a product.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
And there is a whole subgenre of ancestor research—sons and daughters flying to New York clutching scrapbooks, tracking down letters of indenture, photographs, birth certificates.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
A projected labor shortage of nearly 7,000 certificated mechanics in North America next year is 12% fewer than needed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 26, 2026
The certificated staff reductions are expected to yield savings of about $13 million, the district’s statement said.
From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2024
“With the number of requirements and expectations already placed on certificated staff, this is an unreasonable and highly concerning expectation.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2023
Electric aircraft maker Eve Holding Inc is "on track" to meet its goal of starting commercial operations in 2026, an executive said on Friday, and getting its aircraft certificated is the most immediate target.
From Reuters ● Feb. 17, 2023
This money must be paid and its genuineness certificated upon the honor of the United States by the Secretaries of State and of the Treasury.
From A Republic Without a President and Other Stories by Herbert D. (Herbert Dickinson) Ward
It would seem that full local control was given except in the matter of certificating teachers and regulating the government grant.
From Egerton Ryerson and Education in Upper Canada by J. Harold Putnam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
