Ascertain

How to spell ascertain

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce ascertain

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does ascertain mean?

1. verbTo find out or establish something with certainty, usually through checking or investigation.

Ascertain in a sentence

• The auditor wanted to ascertain the exact balance before signing off.

• Police were unable to ascertain the cause of the fire.

Where does ascertain come from?

Language of origin: French

Ascertain came into English in the late 1400s from the Old French acertener, meaning 'to assure' or 'to make certain', which was built on the adjective certain. That in turn traces back to the Latin certus, meaning 'settled, sure, or decided', the past participle of cernere, 'to sift, separate, or discern'. The earliest English sense was actually 'to make someone sure of something', that is, to assure or convince a person, and only later did the meaning shift to the modern idea of finding something out for certain yourself. The everyday relatives certain, certify, and certificate all share the same certus root, which is a useful reminder that ascertain is spelled with the full word 'certain' tucked inside it. The single 's' and the soft 'c' that sounds like an 's' are the usual spelling traps, since the ear hears two 's' sounds where the page shows 'sc'.

How the word is built

• a- (from ad-: to, towards)
• certain (sure, settled, from Latin certus)
• verb force