Confirmation

How to spell confirmation

12 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce confirmation

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does confirmation mean?

1. nounA statement, document, or action that establishes that something is true, correct, or definite.
2. nounA Christian ceremony in which a baptised person is admitted as a full member of the church.

Confirmation in a sentence

• The airline sent a confirmation of the booking to her inbox.

• The bishop will lead the confirmation service for the young parishioners on Sunday.

• The manager asked for written confirmation before releasing the payment.

• She received her confirmation at the cathedral when she was fourteen.

Where does confirmation come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word descends from the Latin confirmare, which combined the intensifying prefix con- with firmare, meaning 'to make firm or strengthen', itself built on the adjective firmus, 'strong' or 'steady'. The literal sense was therefore 'to make something completely solid', and from there it grew into the idea of settling a matter beyond doubt. The related noun confirmatio meant a strengthening or a piece of supporting proof, and that legal and rhetorical sense of backing something up carried into the English word. English took it in during the 1300s by way of Old French confirmacion, and the Christian rite called confirmation reflects the same idea of strengthening a believer in their faith. The buried word 'firm' is a handy spelling anchor: there is a single f in the middle, never a doubled one, because it sits at the join between con and firm.

How the word is built

• con- (intensive: thoroughly)
• firm (from Latin firmus: strong, steady)
• -ation (noun of action)