ASCERTAINING

Verb

ascertaining

present participle of ascertain

Anagrams

• anticreasing, arsenicating

Source: Wiktionary


ASCERTAIN

As`cer*tain", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ascertained; p. pr. & vb. n. Ascertaining.] Etym: [OF. acertener; a (L. ad) + certain. See Certain.]

1. To render (a person) certain; to cause to feel certain; to make confident; to assure; to apprise. [Obs.] When the blessed Virgin was so ascertained. Jer. Taylor. Muncer assured them that the design was approved of by Heaven, and that the Almighty had in a dream ascertained him of its effects. Robertson.

2. To make (a thing) certain to the mind; to free from obscurity, doubt, or change; to make sure of; to fix; to determine. [Archaic] The divine law . . . ascertaineth the truth. Hooker. The very deferring [of his execution] shall increase and ascertain the condemnation. Jer. Taylor. The ministry, in order to ascertain a majority . . . persuaded the queen to create twelve new peers. Smollett. The mildness and precision of their laws ascertained the rule and measure of taxation. Gibbon.

3. To find out or learn for a certainty, by trial, examination, or experiment; to get to know; as, to ascertain the weight of a commodity, or the purity of a metal. He was there only for the purpose of ascertaining whether a descent on England was practicable. Macaulay.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

8 January 2025

SYCAMORE

(noun) Eurasian maple tree with pale grey bark that peels in flakes like that of a sycamore tree; leaves with five ovate lobes yellow in autumn


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Coffee Trivia

According to Guinness World Records, the largest collection of coffee pots belongs to Robert Dahl (Germany) and consists of 27,390 coffee pots as of 2 November 2012, in Rövershagen, Germany.

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