| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| ascertain |
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| SYLLABICATION: | as·cer·tain |
| PRONUNCIATION: |   s  r-t n |
| TRANSITIVE VERB: | Inflected forms: as·cer·tained, as·cer·tain·ing, as·cer·tains
1. To discover with certainty, as through examination or experimentation. See synonyms at discover. 2. Archaic To make certain, definite, and precise. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English acertainen, to inform, from Old French acertener, ascertain- : a-, to (from Latin ad-; see ad–) + certain, certain; see certain. | | OTHER FORMS: | ascer·taina·ble —ADJECTIVE
ascer·taina·ble·ness —NOUN
ascer·taina·bly —ADVERB
ascer·tainment —NOUN
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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