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ascertain

verb
as·​cer·​tain | \ ˌa-sər-ˈtān How to pronounce ascertain (audio) \
ascertained; ascertaining; ascertains

Definition of ascertain

transitive verb

1 : to find out or learn with certainty ascertain the truth trying to ascertain the cause of the fire information that can be easily ascertained on the Internet
2 archaic : to make certain, exact, or precise
Other Words from ascertain Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about ascertain

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Other Words from ascertain

ascertainable \ -​ˈtā-​nə-​bəl How to pronounce ascertainable (audio) \ adjective
ascertainment \ -​ˈtān-​mənt How to pronounce ascertainment (audio) \ noun

Choose the Right Synonym for ascertain

discover, ascertain, determine, unearth, learn mean to find out what one did not previously know. discover may apply to something requiring exploration or investigation or to a chance encounter. discovered the source of the river ascertain implies effort to find the facts or the truth proceeding from awareness of ignorance or uncertainty. attempts to ascertain the population of the region determine emphasizes the intent to establish the facts definitely or precisely. unable to determine the origin of the word unearth implies bringing to light something forgotten or hidden. unearth old records learn may imply acquiring knowledge with little effort or conscious intention (as by simply being told) or it may imply study and practice. I learned her name only today learning Greek

Examples of ascertain in a Sentence

We look at digital media—images, audio and video—and we try to ascertain whether or not they've been manipulated. We use mathematical and computational techniques to detect alterations in them. — Claudia Dreifus, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2007 Currently, an official trying to ascertain road damage in the aftermath of an earthquake might have to keep one eye on the TV news while listening to both radio traffic reports and the police scanner. Since most of these data are available in digital form, the software could take them all in, process them and present a report outlining the best evacuation routes. — Kevin Hogan, Technology Review, April 2002 With an equation linking the money wage to prices, the degree of inflation could be ascertained. — Sidney Weintraub, Modern Economic Thought, (1977) 1993
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Recent Examples on the Web

 The right price, though, was tougher to ascertain, in what amount to a silent auction being conducted by the Raiders for the type of player that’s almost never on the trade market. — Albert Breer, SI.com, "Texans Sit at the Center of Two Seismic Trades on a Frenzied Saturday in the NFL," 2 Sep. 2019 But how much of the odor has been contained or neutralized is difficult to ascertain. — Joe Mozingo, chicagotribune.com, "The world’s largest pot farms, and how Santa Barbara opened the door," 26 Aug. 2019 One is local: The City of St. Paul released a study done by researchers at the University of Minnesota to ascertain citizen satisfaction with the current system of plowing snow in allies. — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, "Real World Economics: Surveys are harder, more complicated than people think," 25 Aug. 2019 Tala is solving for a difficult, though potentially lucrative problem—providing loans to a population of unbanked consumers whose credit worthiness is difficult to ascertain. — Lucinda Shen, Fortune, "Tala, A Company that Offers Loans For As Little As $10, Just Raised $110 Million," 21 Aug. 2019 But how much of the odor has been contained or neutralized is difficult to ascertain. — Joe Mozingo, latimes.com, "The world’s largest pot farms, and how Santa Barbara opened the door," 12 June 2019 But how much of the odor has been contained or neutralized is difficult to ascertain. — Joe Mozingo, San Diego Union-Tribune, "The world’s largest pot farms, and how Santa Barbara opened the door," 12 June 2019 How the data was ascertained, compiled and analyzed PART 1: An Employer Questionnaire was used to collect information about each company’s benefits, policies, practices and other general information (one-quarter of each company’s score). — Paula Hubbs Cohen, azcentral, "Introducing the 2019 Top Companies to Work for in Arizona," 12 June 2019 There continues to be monetary issues at Macclesfield Town who still have Sol Campbell in charge, while there appears to be more experimentation at Oldham Athletic whose plan of action is hard for anyone to ascertain. — SI.com, "Football League: Preview of the 2019/20 Championship, League One & League Two Season," 2 Aug. 2019

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

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First Known Use of ascertain

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

History and Etymology for ascertain

Middle English acertainen to inform, give assurance to, from Anglo-French acerteiner, from a- (from Latin ad-) + certein, certain certain

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More Definitions for ascertain

ascertain

verb
as·​cer·​tain | \ ˌa-sər-ˈtān How to pronounce ascertain (audio) \
ascertained; ascertaining

Kids Definition of ascertain

: to find out with certainty Police tried to ascertain the cause of the accident.

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More from Merriam-Webster on ascertain

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for ascertain

Spanish Central: Translation of ascertain

Nglish: Translation of ascertain for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of ascertain for Arabic Speakers

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