4 definitions found
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Certain \Cer"tain\, a. [F. certain, fr. (assumed) LL. certanus,
fr. L. certus determined, fixed, certain, orig. p. p. of
cernere to perceive, decide, determine; akin to Gr. ? to
decide, separate, and to E. concern, critic, crime, riddle a
sieve, rinse, v.]
1. Assured in mind; having no doubts; free from suspicions
concerning.
To make her certain of the sad event. --Dryden.
I myself am certain of you. --Wyclif.
2. Determined; resolved; -- used with an infinitive.
However, I with thee have fixed my lot, Certain to
undergo like doom. --Milton.
3. Not to be doubted or denied; established as a fact.
The dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof
sure. --Dan. ii. 45.
4. Actually existing; sure to happen; inevitable.
Virtue that directs our ways Through certain dangers
to uncertain praise. --Dryden.
Death, as the Psalmist saith, is certain to all.
--Shak.
5. Unfailing; infallible.
I have often wished that I knew as certain a remedy
for any other distemper. --Mead.
6. Fixed or stated; regular; determinate.
The people go out and gather a certain rate every
day. --Ex. xvi. 4.
7. Not specifically named; indeterminate; indefinite; one or
some; -- sometimes used independenty as a noun, and
meaning certain persons.
It came to pass when he was in a certain city.
--Luke. v. 12.
About everything he wrote there was a certain
natural grace und decorum. --Macaulay.
{For certain}, assuredly.
{Of a certain}, certainly.
Syn: Bound; sure; true; undeniable; unquestionable;
undoubted; plain; indubitable; indisputable;
incontrovertible; unhesitating; undoubting; fixed;
stated.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Certain \Cer"tain\, n.
1. Certainty. [Obs.] --Gower.
2. A certain number or quantity. [Obs.] --Chaucer.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Certain \Cer"tain\, adv.
Certainly. [Obs.] --Milton.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
certain
adj 1: definite but not specified or identified; "set aside a
certain sum each week"; "to a certain degree";
"certain breeds do not make good pets"; "certain
members have not paid their dues"; "a certain popular
teacher"; "a certain Mrs. Jones" [syn: {certain(a)}]
2: having or feeling no doubt or uncertainty; confident and
assured; "felt certain of success"; "was sure (or certain)
she had seen it"; "was very sure in his beliefs"; "sure of
her friends" [syn: {certain(p)}, {sure}] [ant: {uncertain},
{uncertain}]
3: established beyond doubt or question; definitely known;
"what is certain is that every effect must have a cause";
"it is certain that they were on the bus"; "his fate is
certain"; "the date for the invasion is certain" [syn: {certain(p)}]
[ant: {uncertain}]
4: certain to occur; destined or inevitable; "he was certain to
fail"; "his fate is certain"; "In this life nothing is
certain but death and taxes"- Benjamin Franklin; "he faced
certain death"; "sudden but sure regret"; "he is sure to
win" [syn: {sure}] [ant: {uncertain}]
5: established irrevocably; "his fate is sealed" [syn: {sealed}]
[ant: {unsealed}]
6: capable of being depended on; "a quick and certain remedy";
"a sure way to distinguish the two"; "wood dust is a sure
sign of termites" [syn: {sure}]
7: exercising or taking care great enough to bring assurance;
"be certain to disconnect the iron when you are through";
"be sure to lock the doors" [syn: {sure}]