Where does “ascertain” come from?

Ascertain comes from Middle English acerteynen, from Old French acertener, combining the prefix a- (from Latin ad-) with Old French certener, ultimately from Latin certus meaning "settled" or "determined."

ascertain (English): To find out definitely; to discover or establish;...

Definitions

  1. To find out definitely; to discover or establish;...

Ancestry of “ascertain”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishacerteynen—
2Old Frenchacertenerto assure; to make sure of, to make certain of
3Old Frenchcertaincertain; sure
4Vulgar Latincertanuscertain
5Latincertuscertain; fixed, settled, firm; resolved,...
6Proto-Indo-Europeankrey-to sift, separate, divide

Words derived from “ascertain”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European krey- →Every word from Latin certus →Every word from Vulgar Latin certanus →