confirmation

[ kon-fer-mey-shuhn ]

noun

1. an act or instance of confirming, or of establishing someone or something, as by verifying, approving, or corroborating:

   The study is an attempt at the scientific confirmation of previous anecdotal results.

   The nomination and confirmation of this candidate as Court of Appeals Judge is a step in the right direction.

2. Religion.
   1. a rite in some Christian churches, in which baptized individuals profess their faith, are accorded status as full members, and, in some denominations, receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
   2. a solemn ceremony among Reform and certain Conservative Jews, admitting young people to adult membership in the Jewish community after completion of a prescribed course of study.
3. something that confirms, confirm, as a corroborative statement or piece of evidence:

   His birth certificate served as confirmation of his citizenship.

confirmation

/ ˌkɒnfəˈmeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of confirming
2. something that confirms; verification
3. a rite in several Christian churches that confirms a baptized person in his or her faith and admits him or her to full participation in the church
4. (in the philosophy of science) the relationship between an observation and the theory which it supposedly renders more probable Compare hypothetico-deductive

Other Words From

• con·fir·ma·tion·al adjective
• non·con·fir·ma·tion noun
• pre·con·fir·ma·tion noun
• re·con·fir·ma·tion noun
• self-con·fir·ma·tion noun
• su·per·con·fir·ma·tion noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of confirmation¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Old French and Latin confirmātiōn-, stem of confirmātiō; confirm, -ation

Example Sentences

The mayor said: "We will be publishing our budget in due course and setting out confirmation that this policy will carry on next year."

From BBC

Neither representatives for Malone nor the Coachella festival immediately responded to The Times’ request for confirmation.

From Los Angeles Times

If Republicans bow to his demand to recess the Senate so that he can install appointees without confirmation, it would rewrite the balance of power established by the founders more than two centuries ago.

From Salon

The events manager and mother-of-one promptly received booking confirmation messages from a firm called Star Domes, along with a key code and an address in the small village of Knayton.

From BBC

“I do have patients who come in for confirmation of pregnancies and then disclose they don’t want to continue with the pregnancy for whatever reason,” Marsee said.

From Salon

Related Words

• acceptance
• admission
• affirmation
• approval
• authorization
• consent
• corroboration
• endorsement
• evidence
• green light
• passage
• recognition
• testimony
• verification