confirm

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verb con·firm \ kən-ˈfərm \

Definition of confirm

transitive verb

1 :to give approval to :ratify

confirm a treaty

2 :to make firm or firmer :strengthen

confirm one's resolve

3 :to administer the rite of confirmation to

4 :to give new assurance of the validity of :remove doubt about by authoritative act or indisputable fact

confirm a rumor

confirm an order

—

confirmability

play \kən-ˌfər-mə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

—

confirmable

play \kən-ˈfər-mə-bəl\ adjective

See confirm defined for English-language learners

See confirm defined for kids

Examples of confirm in a Sentence

The tests confirmed the doctors' suspicions of cancer.
The attack confirmed her worst fears about the neighborhood.
The award confirmed her status as one of the great movie actresses.
The dentist's office called to confirm your appointment for tomorrow.
We have a reservation for you for tomorrow night. Please call to confirm.

Recent Examples of confirm from the Web

James Thrash, the NFL and NFL Players Association’s appeals officer for on-field discipline, ruled to reduce Burfict’s five-game suspension to three games on Wednesday, a league source confirmed to The Enquirer.

— jim owczarski, Cincinnati.com, "Bengals' Vontaze Burfict has suspension reduced to three games," 30 Aug. 2017
S. Washington Street confirmed the news Monday morning.

— erin hegarty, Naperville Sun, "Le Pain Quotidien signs lease for Naperville bakery-restaurant," 28 Aug. 2017
Medieval times people knew what science confirms today: Cinnamon can help slow the absorption of glucose.

— christine buckley, Bon Appetit, "How to "Cleanse" Without Cutting Anything Out," 24 Aug. 2017
Deputy Coroner Eric Hansen told the Times Herald an official cause of death can’t be confirmed until an autopsy is performed.

— tess koman, Cosmopolitan, "20-Year-Old Gets Suddenly Sick, Dies While Hiking With Her Friends," 24 Aug. 2017
Louisville City spokesman Jonathan Lintner confirmed the club has not discussed hosting events with the United States Soccer Federation.

— danielle lerner, The Courier-Journal, "Louisville, Lexington passed over for 2026 World Cup bid; Might international soccer be in play?," 18 Aug. 2017
Back in the ER, time starts moving quickly again as a doctor comes in and explains that the scan confirms a rupture and an internal bleed and that I will be admitted to the hospital for emergency surgery, now.

— joanna petrone, Longreads, "Pregnant, then Ruptured," 18 Aug. 2017
The government confirmed 792 cases in 130 cities nationwide, with several hundred more under investigation.

— sam kean, Science | AAAS, "When will yellow fever strike Brazil again? Monkeys and mosquitoes hold clues," 17 Aug. 2017
In total, ten different craft recorded confirmed or possible measurements of the event.

— avery thompson, Popular Mechanics, "An Army of Spacecraft Tracked a Solar Storm From Mars to Pluto," 16 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'confirm.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of confirm

Middle English, from Anglo-French cunfermer, from Latin confirmare, from com- + firmare to make firm, from firmus firm

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

confirm Synonyms

Synonyms

argue, attest, authenticate, bear out, certify, corroborate, substantiate, support, validate, verify, vindicate

Antonyms

disprove, rebut, refute

Related Words

avouch, back (up), testify (to), vouch (for), witness; guarantee, warrant; affirm, assert, aver, avow, declare, profess; demonstrate, document, establish, prove, reinforce (also reenforce)

Near Antonyms

contradict, gainsay; deny, disavow, disclaim; challenge, contest, dispute, question

Synonym Discussion of confirm

confirm, corroborate, substantiate, verify, authenticate, validate mean to attest to the truth or validity of something. confirm implies the removing of doubts by an authoritative statement or indisputable fact.

- confirmed the reports

corroborate suggests the strengthening of what is already partly established.

- witnesses corroborated his story

substantiate implies the offering of evidence that sustains the contention.

- the claims have yet to be substantiated

verify implies the establishing of correspondence of actual facts or details with those proposed or guessed at.

- all statements of fact in the article have been verified

authenticate implies establishing genuineness by adducing legal or official documents or expert opinion.

- handwriting experts authenticated the diaries

validate implies establishing validity by authoritative affirmation or by factual proof.

- validated the hypothesis by experiments

CONFIRM Defined for English Language Learners

confirm

play

verb

Definition of confirm for English Language Learners

: to state or show that (something) is true or correct
: to tell someone that something has definitely happened or is going to happen : to make (something) definite or official
: to make (something) stronger or more certain : to cause (someone) to believe (something) more strongly

CONFIRM Defined for Kids

confirm

play

verb con·firm \ kən-ˈfərm \

Definition of confirm for Students

confirmed; confirming

1 :to make sure of the truth of

Their arrest confirms my suspicion.

2 :to make firm or firmer (as in a habit, in faith, or in intention) :strengthen

The job at the shelter confirmed her intention to become a veterinarian.

3 :approve 2, accept

Senators confirmed the treaty.

4 :to perform a ceremony admitting a person into a church or synagogue

Law Dictionary

confirm

transitive verb con·firm

legal Definition of confirm

1 a :to make valid by necessary formal approval

the debtor's chapter 13 plan confirmed by the court

b :to vote approval of

confirm a nomination

2 :to give formal acknowledgment of receipt of

3 :to remove doubt about by authoritative act or indisputable fact

a consent decree confirming Capt. Brown's right to his cargo
—W. G. Young

Learn More about confirm

See words that rhyme with confirm Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for confirm Spanish Central: Translation of confirm Nglish: Translation of confirm for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of confirm for Arabic speakers

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Definition of confirm

confirmability

confirmable

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Examples of confirm in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of confirm

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Synonyms

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Synonym Discussion of confirm

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CONFIRM Defined for English Language Learners

confirm

Definition of confirm for English Language Learners

CONFIRM Defined for Kids

confirm

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Law Dictionary

confirm

legal Definition of confirm

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