noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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General-American:/ˈsɝtn̩ti/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈsɜːtn̩ti/
CMU ARPABET:S ER1 T AH0 N T IY0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The state of being certain.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
with certainty
moral certainty
absolute certainty
She spoke with complete certainty.
There is no certainty that the plan will succeed.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: certitude, sureness
Antonyms: doubt, uncertainty
2
noun
Meaning 2
An instance of being certain.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
A fact or truth unquestionably established.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: banker, cert, certainty, certitude, cinch, dead cert, fatality, inevitability, racing certainty, sure thing, fair bet, good bet, safe bet, sure bet
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
something that is certain
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
his victory is a certainty
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: sure thing, foregone conclusion
Antonyms: uncertainty
Broader terms: quality
Narrower terms: cert, ineluctability, unavoidability, inevitability, inevitableness, surety, indisputability, indubitability, unquestionability, unquestionableness, moral certainty, predictability, slam dunk
