Etymologically
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certain

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈsɜː.tən/, US /ˈsɝː.tən/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English certein, borrowed from Old French certain (“reliable, sure”),[2][3] from Vulgar Latin *certānus, an extension of certus (“determined, fixed, sure”),[2][3][4] originally a variant past participle of cernere (“to sift, distinguish, decide”).[2][3][5] Etymonline traces it to Proto-Indo-European *krei- (“to sieve”),[2][6] also the source of Greek κρίνω (krī́nō, “to separate, judge”) and so of crisis.[2][7][5] Latin certus itself gave French cert, Italian certo and Spanish cierto.[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Determined, fixed, settled: 1297,[8][9] or before 1300, in Arthour and Merlin.[3]

Semantic evolution

“Sure to happen, inevitable” and “to be depended on” are from before 1300.[8] Of persons, “fully confident in one's knowledge”, it is from the mid-14th century, a sense Latin certus also had,[2] or 1362.[8] “Established as true beyond doubt” is from about 1400.[2][8] The meaning “particular but not named”, as in a certain man, is from the late 14th century;[2] the OED notes that this is hardly separable from the first sense, since a certain hour was fixed but not told to the reader.[2] A certain age, “no longer young”, is from the 19th century, after French d'un certain âge.[7] The pronoun use, “some”, is from the 15th century.[5] Certain sure, “quite sure”, was common in English dialect speech.[10]

Timeline

  • 1297 – fixed, settled.[8]
  • before 1300 – inevitable; dependable.[8]
  • 1362 – of persons, confident.[8]
  • late 14th century – particular but unnamed.[2]
  • c. 1400 – established as true.[2][8]
  • 15th century – pronoun, some.[5]
  • 19th century – a certain age.[7]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Definite; fixed.
  2. Sure to happen; inevitable.
  3. Established beyond doubt; indisputable.
  4. Reliable; dependable.
  5. Confident, assured.
  6. Particular but not named: a certain person.
  7. Some, but not much: a certain reluctance.

Pronoun

  1. An indefinite but limited number; some: certain of the members.

Word family

  • certainly
  • certainty

Usage notes

The American Heritage Dictionary notes that, though certain seems an absolute term, it is often qualified, as in fairly certain, and compares it with inevitable, inescapable, unavoidable and sure.[11]

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  7. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  9. ^ Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
  10. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)
  11. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin