-
strongly believing something; having no doubts 确信；确定；无疑 I think it was him, but I can't be certain. 我想是他，但我不能确定。 - certain (that)…
She wasn’t certain (that) he had seen her. 她不敢肯定他见过她。 I'm certain we'll think of something. 我肯定我们会想出办法的。 - certain about something
Are you absolutely certain about this? 你对这事绝对确信无疑吗？ - certain of something
I am not certain of the precise date. 我不确定确切的日期。 - certain who/where, etc…
I'm not certain who was there. 我无法确定谁当时在场。
Extra ExamplesTopics Doubt, guessing and certaintya2To my certain knowledge he was somewhere else at the time (= I am sure about it). 我敢肯定他当时不在现场。 I grew more and more certain that she was lying to me. 我越来越确信她在对我撒谎。 He wasn't certain who he'd given the papers to. 他不确定把文件给了谁。 You have to be quite certain of the facts before making a decision. 在做决定之前，你必须对事实有相当的把握。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- feel
- look
- …
- very
- absolutely
- quite
- …
- about
- of
- can’t say for certain
- not know for certain
-
that you can rely on to happen or to be true 确实；确定；肯定 The climbers face certain death if the rescue today is unsuccessful. 救援行动如果今天不能成功，登山队员必死无疑。 - it is certain (that)…
It is certain that they will agree. 他们一定会同意。 It was not certain that the bones were even human. 还不能确定这些骨头是人的。 - certain to do something
She looks certain to win an Oscar. 看来奥斯卡金像奖非她莫属。 He seemed certain to be defeated in the election. 他似乎肯定会在选举中失败。 The death toll was almost certain to rise. 死亡人数几乎肯定会上升。 They are certain to agree. 他们一定会同意。 One thing is certain—it will be exciting. 有一点是肯定的——这将是令人兴奋的。 - certain of something/of doing something
If you want to be certain of getting a ticket, book now. 要想有把握买到票，现在就得预订。
Synonyms certaincertain- bound
- sure
- definite
- guaranteed
- certain that you can rely on to happen or be true:
It’s certain that they will agree. 他们肯定会同意。 They are certain to agree. 他们肯定会同意。
- bound
[not before noun] certain to happen, or to do or be something. 指肯定会、一定会 - sure certain to happen or be true; that can be trusted or relied on:
She’s sure to be picked for the team. 她肯定会入选该队。 It’s sure to rain. 必定会下雨。
- definite (rather informal
) certain to happen; that is not going to change: 指必将发生、不会改变： Is it definite that he’s leaving? 他肯定要离开吗？
- guaranteed certain to have a particular result:
That kind of behaviour is guaranteed to make him angry. 那样的行为肯定会让他生气。
- certain/sure of something
- certain/bound/sure/guaranteed to do something
- certain/definite that…
- I couldn’t say for certain/sure/definite.
Synonyms suresure- confident
- convinced
- certain
- positive
- clear
- sure [not before noun] without any doubt that you are right, that something is true, that you will get something or that something will happen:
‘Is that John over there?’ ‘I’m not sure.’ “那边那个人是约翰吗？” “我说不准。” Are you sure about that? 这事你肯定吗？ England must win this game to be sure of qualifying. 英格兰队必须拿下这场比赛才能确保获得资格。
- confident completely sure that something will happen in the way that you want or expect:
I’m quite confident that you’ll get the job. 我肯定你能得到那份工作。 The team feels confident of winning. 这个队觉得有把握取胜。
- convinced [not before noun] completely sure that something is true or right, especially because the evidence seems to prove it or somebody else has persuaded you to believe it:
I’m convinced that she’s innocent. 我坚信她是清白无辜的。
- certain [not usually before noun] sure that you are right or that something is true:
Are you absolutely certain about this? 你对这事绝对确信无疑吗？
sure or certain? 用 sure 还是 certain？ - positive [not before noun] (rather informal) completely sure that something is true:
She was positive that he’d been there. 她确信他曾到过那儿。 ‘Are you sure?’ ‘Positive.’ “你敢肯定吗？”“绝对肯定。”
- clear (often used in negative statements and questions) having no doubt or confusion about something:
My memory isn’t really clear on that point. 那一点我记不太清楚了。
- sure/confident/convinced/certain/positive/clear about something
- sure/confident/convinced/certain of something
- sure/confident/convinced/certain/positive/clear that…
- sure/certain/clear who/what/how, etc.
- to feel sure/confident/convinced/certain/positive
- quite/absolutely/completely/fairly/pretty sure/confident/convinced/certain/positive/clear
- not altogether sure/confident/convinced/certain/clear
Extra ExamplesTopics Doubt, guessing and certaintya2Digby looked certain to be the next president. 迪格比看来肯定会成为下任总统。 It's by no means certain that she'll get the job. 她完全没有把握能得到这个工作。 If you want to be certain of getting into the concert, buy your ticket now. 要想有把握听到音乐会，现在就买票吧。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- feel
- look
- …
- very
- absolutely
- quite
- …
- about
- of
- can’t say for certain
- not know for certain
-
used to mention a particular thing, person or group without giving any more details about it or them （不提及细节时用）某事，某人，某种 For certain personal reasons I shall not be able to attend. 由于某种个人原因，我将不能出席。 Certain people might disagree with this. 某些人对这事可能不会赞同。 This car appeals to a certain type of driver. 这种车对某种类型的司机很有吸引力。 You can choose to only watch certain kinds of movies. 你可以选择只看某些类型的电影。 They refused to release their hostages unless certain conditions were met. 除非某些条件得到满足，否则他们不会释放人质。 The president can under certain circumstances dissolve parliament. 总统在某些情况下可以解散议会。
-
slight; easy to notice, but difficult to describe 轻微的；微小的；显而易见却难以描述的 - (formal)
used with a person’s name to show that the speaker does not know the person （与人名连用，表示说话者不识其人）某某，某位，一位叫…的
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French, based on Latin certus ‘settled, sure’.
Idioms
for certain
without doubt 肯定；确定；无疑 Extra ExamplesI don't know for certain how many people are coming. 我不确定到底有多少人会来。 I think she's a teacher, but I couldn't say for certain. 我想她是位老师，但不能肯定。 I couldn't say for certain whether she'll be there. 我不能肯定地说她是否会在那里。
Express Yourself Expressing certainty or uncertainty表示确定或不确定 陈述已经或将要发生之事时对自己所言表示确定或不确定：
I'm sure/100% certain/absolutely positive I left my keys on the table. 我肯定我把钥匙落在桌子上了。
There's no doubt in my mind that this is the best option. 我心里确信无疑，这是最佳选择。
Without a doubt,/No question, this is where it was. 毫无疑问，它原来就在这里。
I'm not (at all) sure what time they arrive, to be honest. 老实说，我（一点也）拿不准他们什么时候到。
I rather doubt they'll call back. 我有点儿怀疑他们是否会回电话。
make certain (that…)
make certain of something/of doing something
to do something in order to be sure that something else will happen 确保（做某事）
of a certain age