cer ‧ ti ‧ fy /ˈsɜːtəfaɪ, ˈsɜːtɪfaɪ $ ˈsɜːr-/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle certified , present participle certifying , third person singular certifies ) [transitive]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: French ; Origin: certifier , from Late Latin certificare , from Latin certus ; ⇨ ↑ certain 1 ]
1 . to state that something is correct or true, especially after some kind of test:
The accounts were certified by an auditor.
certify (that)
We need to certify that the repairs have been satisfactorily carried out.
certify somebody dead British English (=when a doctor says officially that a person is dead)
The driver was certified dead at the scene.
2 . to give an official paper to someone which states that they have completed a course of training for a profession ⇨ certificate
certify somebody as something
She was certified as a teacher in 1990.
3 . to officially state that someone is mentally ill