confirm
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to establish the truth, accuracy, validity, or genuineness of; corroborate; verify.
This report confirms my suspicions.
- Synonyms:
- validate, authenticate, substantiate, prove
- Antonyms:
- disprove
-
to acknowledge with definite assurance.
Did the hotel confirm our room reservation?
-
to make valid or binding by some formal or legal act; sanction; ratify.
to confirm a treaty;
to confirm her appointment to the Supreme Court.
- Antonyms:
- invalidate
-
to make firm or more firm; add strength to; settle or establish firmly.
Their support confirmed my determination to run for mayor.
- Synonyms:
- fix
- Antonyms:
- shake
-
to strengthen (a person) in habit, resolution, opinion, etc..
The accident confirmed him in his fear of driving.
-
to administer the religious rite of confirmation to.
verb
-
(may take a clause as object) to prove to be true or valid; corroborate; verify
-
(may take a clause as object) to assert for a second or further time, so as to make more definite
he confirmed that he would appear in court
-
to strengthen or make more firm
his story confirmed my doubts
-
to make valid by a formal act or agreement; ratify
-
to administer the rite of confirmation to
Other Word Forms
- confirmability noun
- confirmable adjective
- confirmatory adjective
- confirmer noun
- confirmingly adverb
- nonconfirming adjective
- preconfirm verb (used with object)
- reconfirm verb (used with object)
- unconfirm verb (used with object)
- unconfirmability noun
Etymology
Origin of confirm
First recorded in 1250–1300; from Latin confirmāre “to strengthen, confirm” ( con-, firm 1 ); replacing Middle English confermen, from Old French, from Latin, as above
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The results confirm that multiple optical links can operate at the same time without significant interference.
From Science Daily • Apr. 2, 2026
"Janelia had a one-of-a-kind setup that let us test and confirm what we were seeing."
From Science Daily • Apr. 1, 2026
The app is being used to confirm the drinking age of users at supermarkets, book doctors’ appointments and enter museums.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026
National teams can request their own medical checks on players to confirm injury withdrawals and agreements can be reached with national teams over players carrying minor injuries.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
“I have to confirm that’s a resident here. I don’t recognize the name.”
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
