kənˈfərm, -fə̄m, -fəim transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English confermen, confirmen, from Old French confermer, confirmer, from Latin confirmare, from com- + firmare to make firm, from firmus firm — more at firm
1. : to make firm : strengthen (as a person) in resolution, conviction, loyalty, position
America would once again as a nation confound its critics and … confirm its friends — Barbara Ward
2.
a. : to make valid by formal assent : complete by a necessary approval
the Senate confirms a treaty
often : to vote approval of (the appointment of a person to an office)
the Senate confirmed his appointment to the Supreme Court
b. : to give formal acknowledgment of receipt of
an order confirmed by a stockbroker
3. : to administer the rite of confirmation to
4. : to give new assurance of the truth or validity of : corroborate
confirm a rumor
confirm a hypothesis or diagnosis
confirm a plane reservation
5. : to make firmer or more settled in a conviction, purpose, or habit
the experience confirmed him in his dislike of foreign cooking
6. : to state or imply the truth of (as a rumor or forecast) : assert , maintain — usually used with that
7. Scots law : to ratify the right of (a person) to take and administer property of a deceased person as executor or administrator
Synonyms:
: corroborate , substantiate , verify , authenticate , validate : these may be compared in that they signify to attest or establish usually beyond a reasonable doubt the truth, accuracy, validity, or genuineness of something. confirm and corroborate both imply an attesting to something already formulated or recognized but not yet made certain. confirm usually implies the making unquestionable of something in question by means of authoritative statement or indisputable fact
they are asked to confirm or correct facts — Evelyn Lohr
there is a rumor — which cannot of course be confirmed — Frank Gorrell
confirm the persistent suspicion that eggs are carriers of fowl typhoid — Collier's Year Book
corroborate suggests the buttressing or strengthening by authority or fact of something already pretty well established
in general, the material illustrates and corroborates what has already become known from other sources — G.F.Kennan
no matter how many corroborating tests we may adduce as proof … the skeptic still is not convinced — Arthur Pap
these were the earliest professional sodalities in Spain, though corroborating documentation is lacking — G.M.Foster
substantiate implies the presenting of evidence adequate to demonstrate or make certain
individual differences within one race and culture are well substantiated … by psychological and practical tests — A.L.Kroeber
reference material to support, substantiate, or enlarge upon the text — Frank Mortimer
no proof had to be brought forward to substantiate the claims they made — Sherwood Anderson
verify implies the seeking of a close correspondence between a statement and the facts it involves or an attestation to the correctness of its logic, or, as applied to suspicions or predictions, the actualization in fact of the thing suspected
he has explored most of Trans-Jordan, verified Biblical accounts by his findings and excavations — Current Biography
discouraging predictions that have not been verified by events — Times Literary Supplement
authenticate and validate presuppose a question about genuineness or validity. authenticate signifies to establish genuineness by or as if by expert opinion or official or legal document
the painting was finally authenticated by experts in Barcelona and Madrid — Time
each citizen ought to be authenticated as the son of his proper father — H.M.Parshley
an authenticated copy of the Declaration — Dumas Malone
validate generally involves establishing of validity, as of a document by reference to legal or official act or record or as of an opinion or policy by justifying facts or events
what directors do … by law must be validated by formal board action — G.B.Hurff
the sort of evidence by which one validates a scientific hypothesis — Life
the expansion of demand which alone can validate the policy — J.A.Hobson
the two performances more than validated the words of praise — Irving Kolodin