attest
Americanverb (used with object)
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attests,
present (3rd person singular)
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attested,
past participle, past
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attesting
present participle
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to bear witness to; certify; declare to be correct, true, or genuine; declare the truth of, in words or writing, especially to affirm in an official capacity.
to attest the truth of a statement.
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to give proof or evidence of; manifest.
His works attest his industry.
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Linguistics. to give evidence of the existence of (a word, phrase, usage, etc.), especially in writing: The dictionary attests this meaning as early as 1890.
The plural form is attested in ancient texts.
The dictionary attests this meaning as early as 1890.
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to put on oath.
verb (used without object)
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attests,
present (3rd person singular)
-
attested,
past participle, past
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attesting
present participle
noun
verb
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(tr) to affirm the correctness or truth of
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to witness (an act, event, etc) or bear witness to (an act, event, etc) as by signature or oath
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(tr) to make evident; demonstrate
his life of luxury attests his wealth
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(tr) to provide evidence for
the marks in the ground attested the presence of a fossil
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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attestantnoun
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attestationnoun
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attestatornoun
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attesternoun
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attestornoun
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reattestverb (used with object)
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attestableadjective
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attestiveadjective
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unattestedadjective
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well-attestedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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attestsimple
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attestssimple
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have attestedperfect
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has attestedperfect
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am attestingprogressive
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are attestingprogressive
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is attestingprogressive
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have been attestingperfect progressive
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has been attestingperfect progressive
Past
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attestedsimple
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had attestedperfect
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was attestingprogressive
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were attestingprogressive
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had been attestingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of attest
First recorded in 1590–1600; < Middle French attester, from Latin attestārī “to bear witness to, affirm, confirm” equivalent to at- at- + testārī “to witness” ( see testis ( def. ))
Explanation
To attest is to prove or declare to be true. For example: the fact that you aced the SAT attests to the strength of your vocabulary. Attest and testify come from the same Latin word testari, which means "to declare." Although both words are kind of formal, you often testify in a courtroom, but attest doesn't require a court of law to function. You can attest to anything — that the funny looking shoes toned your thighs, that what someone says is true, or that the new acne medicine really works. To remember it, think of when you pass a test, you attest that you know the material.
Vocabulary lists containing attest
100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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Posted
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The Ancient Period, Before 600 BCE
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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:
None of this is bad on its own, as millions of Sims fans can attest.
From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2026
Tens of thousands of comments on BookTok, a popular book community on TikTok, attest to the popularity of one of Russia's greatest novelists with the social media generation.
From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026
I used to be a bit of a slob, my friends and family will attest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
As a condition of being tax-exempt, nonprofit private schools must attest that they won’t discriminate based on race, color, or national or ethnic origin.
From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026
The voting was absolutely free, as Aureliano himself was able to attest since he spent almost the entire day with his father-in-law seeing that no one voted more than once.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Shew said he’s only supposed to be given registrations to process if the would-be voter attests they are a U.S. citizen, as federal law requires.
From Salon ● May 14, 2026
The huge demand in the U.S. attests to advice gone unheeded.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 2026
"Belen Garijo's brilliant international career attests to her strategic vision and her ability to drive profound and value-creating transformations," board chairman Frederic Oudea said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026
A total of 53 crosses attests to that.
From BBC ● Dec. 7, 2025
Gorgias’s brother Herodicus is a doctor, and the former attests that when trying to persuade a patient to submit to a course of treatment, his oratory is far more effective than his brother’s medical expertise.
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
De Kooning’s refusal to settle for a single approach is attested to by a series of cartoon-like standing figures, repeated by means of transfer techniques, that recalls those earlier efforts at illustration.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
More than 1,000 people attested to their losses after investing with GPB, according to federal prosecutors who described the victims as “hardworking, everyday people.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2025
A large, gestural 1972 painting attested to a road not taken, while records of his sojourns in Europe and Africa revealed the influence of architecture on abstract structure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 25, 2025
Today, she revels in ownership over the honor: “That was for me too and I recognize what my part in that was. I know I was put in this role for this,” she attested.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2025
Auburn physician Blanchard Fosgate attested that while the cold-water bath seemed hardly to affect some inmates, others showed damage both lasting and profound.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
A medical letter attesting to your mother’s health might help.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026
The group sent a letter Monday to the Justice Department asking it to file court documents attesting to the fund being dead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
“Where we don’t have research, clinical trials, what we’ve got a ton of, is, shall we say, testimonials, patient affidavits, attesting to the wonders of the drug,” said Scott Brunner, the alliance’s chief executive officer.
From Salon ● Apr. 4, 2026
"Then, the video attesting to the truth would be shown," she says.
From BBC ● Feb. 14, 2026
Kamen reached out to Lawrence for a deposition attesting to his loyalty, of which Lawrence in fact had no doubt.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
