certain

adj.

1. 确实；确定；肯定
   that you can rely on to happen or to be true
   1. It is certain that they will agree/They are certain to agree.
      他们肯定会同意。
   2. She looks certain to win an Oscar.
      看来奥斯卡金像奖非她莫属。
   3. The climbers face certain death if the rescue today is unsuccessful.
      救援行动如果今天不能成功，登山队员必死无疑。
   4. If you want to be certain of getting a ticket, book now.
      要想有把握买到票，现在就得预订。
2. 确信；确定；无疑
   firmly believing sth; having no doubts
   1. She wasn't certain (that) he had seen her.
      她不敢肯定他见过她。
   2. Are you absolutely certain about this?
      你对这事绝对确信无疑吗？
   3. I'm not certain who was there.
      我无法确定谁当时在场。
   4. To my certain knowledge he was somewhere else at the time (= I am sure about it) .
      我敢肯定他当时在别处。
3. （不提及细节时用）某事，某人，某种
   used to mention a particular thing, person or group without giving any more details about it or them
   1. For certain personal reasons I shall not be able to attend.
      由于某种个人原因，我将不能出席。
   2. Certain people might disagree with this.
      某些人对这事可能不会赞同。
   3. They refused to release their hostages unless certain conditions were met.
      除非某些条件得到满足，否则他们不会释放人质。
4. （与人名连用，表示说话者不识其人）某某，某位，一位叫…的
   used with a person's name to show that the speaker does not know the person
   1. It was a certain Dr Davis who performed the operation.
      是一位叫戴维斯的医生做的手术。
5. 轻微的；微小的；显而易见却难以描述的
   slight; noticeable, but difficult to describe
   1. That's true, to a certain extent .
      在一定程度上的确如此。
   2. I felt there was a certain coldness in her manner.
      我觉得她的态度有点冷淡。

pron.

1. （不提及人或事物的名称时用）某些
   used for talking about some members of a group of people or things without giving their names
   1. Certain of those present were unwilling to discuss the matter further.
      某些在场的人不愿意进一步讨论这个问题。

BEING SURE 肯定

1. ADJ-GRADED 肯定的;有把握的;毫无疑问的
   If you are certain about something, you firmly believe it is true and have no doubt about it. If you are not certain about something, you do not have definite knowledge about it.
   1. She's absolutely certain she's going to make it in the world...
      她坚信自己会出人头地。
   2. We are not certain whether the appendix had already burst or not...
      我们不敢肯定阑尾是否已经破裂。
   3. It wasn't a balloon — I'm certain of that.
      那不是气球，这点我敢肯定。
2. ADJ-GRADED 必然的;必定的;肯定的
   If you say that something is certain to happen, you mean that it will definitely happen.
   1. However, the scheme is certain to meet opposition from fishermen's leaders...
      然而，这项计划一定会遭到渔民领袖的反对。
   2. It's not certain they'll accept the Front's candidate if he wins...
      即便来自阵线的候选人获胜，他们能否接受他还说不准。
   3. Brazil need to beat Uruguay to be certain of a place in the finals...
      巴西必须击败乌拉圭才能确保进入决赛。
   4. The Prime Minister is heading for certain defeat if he forces a vote...
      总理要是强迫进行投票的话，那么他必败无疑。
   5. Victory looked certain.
      胜利在望。
3. ADJ 确凿的；无疑的
   If you say that something is certain, you firmly believe that it is true, or have definite knowledge about it.
   1. One thing is certain, both have the utmost respect for each other...
      有一点可以肯定，那就是双方都非常尊重对方。
   2. It is certain that Rodney arrived the previous day.
      罗德尼肯定是头天到的。
4. ADJ-GRADED 确实的;肯定的
   If you have certain knowledge, you know that a particular thing is true.
   1. He had been there four times to my certain knowledge.
      我确定他去过那儿4次。
5. PHRASE 确切地;无疑地
   If you know something for certain, you have no doubt at all about it.
   1. She couldn't know what time he'd go, or even for certain that he'd go at all...
      她不知道他何时走，就连他到底走不走都说不准。
   2. Hill had to find out for certain.
      希尔得弄个清楚。
6. PHRASE 确保；保证
   If you make certain that something is the way you want or expect it to be, you take action to ensure that it is.
   1. Firstly, they must make certain that their pension needs are adequately catered for...
      首先，他们得确保他们能获得足够的养老金。
   2. To make extra certain, a police helicopter kept watch from the skies.
      为确保万无一失，一架警用直升机一直在空中警戒。

REFERRING AND INDICATING AMOUNT 表示数量

1. ADJ 某个;特定的
   You use certain to indicate that you are referring to one particular thing, person, or group, although you are not saying exactly which it is.
   1. There will be certain people who'll say 'I told you so!'...
      一定有人会说：“我怎么跟你说来着！”
   2. You owe a certain person a sum of money...
      你欠某人一笔钱。
   3. Leaflets have been air dropped telling people to leave certain areas.
      传单被空投下来，要求人们离开某些地区。
2. QUANT 某些;一些
   When you refer to certain of a group of people or things, you are referring to some particular members of that group.
   1. They'll have to give up completely on certain of their studies.
      他们将不得不彻底放弃某些研究。
3. ADJ (用于人名前，表示不认识或了解很少)某个
   You can use a certain before the name of a person in order to indicate that you do not know the person or anything else about them.
   1. She managed to arrange for them to be hidden in the house of a certain Father Boduen.
      她设法安排他们藏在一个叫博迪恩的神父家里。
4. ADJ (品质、特点等)一定程度上的，有点儿
   You use a certain to indicate that something such as a quality or condition exists, and often to suggest that it is not great in amount or degree.
   1. That was the very reason why he felt a certain bitterness...
      那就是为什么他感到有些痛苦。
   2. There is a certain impatience among some of the soldiers...
      有些士兵有点儿不耐烦。
   3. I received a certain amount of sympathy immediately after the attack.
      遇袭之后，人们立即对我表示了些许同情。

1. You have to allow for a certain amount of error
   你必须将一定量的误差考虑在内。
2. I still do a certain amount of work for them
   我仍然为他们做一些工作。
3. There are certain ethical principles that are basic to all the great religions.
   某些道德原则在所有主要宗教中都是必不可少的。
4. Recent studies have borne out claims that certain perfumes can bring about profound psychological changes.
   最近的研究证实了有些香水可以引起深刻心理变化的说法。
5. I'm bound to say that it seems to me this is certain to lead to violence.
   我不得不说，在我看来这肯定会引发暴力事件。
6. She's absolutely certain she's going to make it in the world
   她坚信自己会出人头地。
7. It wasn't a balloon — I'm certain of that.
   那不是气球，这点我敢肯定。
8. It's not certain they'll accept the Front's candidate if he wins
   即便来自阵线的候选人获胜，他们能否接受他还说不准。
9. Brazil need to beat Uruguay to be certain of a place in the finals
   巴西必须击败乌拉圭才能确保进入决赛。
10. The Prime Minister is heading for certain defeat if he forces a vote
    总理要是强迫进行投票的话，那么他必败无疑。
11. Victory looked certain.
    胜利在望。
12. One thing is certain, both have the utmost respect for each other
    有一点可以肯定，那就是双方都非常尊重对方。
13. He had been there four times to my certain knowledge.
    我确定他去过那儿4次。
14. She couldn't know what time he'd go, or even for certain that he'd go at all
    她不知道他何时走，就连他到底走不走都说不准。
15. Hill had to find out for certain.
    希尔得弄个清楚。
16. Firstly, they must make certain that their pension needs are adequately catered for
    首先，他们得确保他们能获得足够的养老金。
17. To make extra certain, a police helicopter kept watch from the skies.
    为确保万无一失，一架警用直升机一直在空中警戒。
18. There will be certain people who'll say 'I told you so!'
    一定有人会说：“我怎么跟你说来着！”
19. You owe a certain person a sum of money
    你欠某人一笔钱。
20. Leaflets have been air dropped telling people to leave certain areas.
    传单被空投下来，要求人们离开某些地区。
21. They'll have to give up completely on certain of their studies.
    他们将不得不彻底放弃某些研究。
22. She managed to arrange for them to be hidden in the house of a certain Father Boduen.
    她设法安排他们藏在一个叫博迪恩的神父家里。
23. That was the very reason why he felt a certain bitterness
    那就是为什么他感到有些痛苦。
24. There is a certain impatience among some of the soldiers
    有些士兵有点儿不耐烦。
25. Certain exclusions and limitations apply.
    一些排除因素和限制条件比较适用。
26. To a certain extent it's easier for men to get work
    在一定程度上，男性更容易找到工作。
27. Certain guidelines can be given. First, have a heating engineer check the safety of the system.
    可以提供一些指导原则：第一，找位供暖工程师检查系统的安全性。
28. Each hotel is inspected and, if it fulfils certain criteria, is recommended.
    会对每家旅馆都进行检查，如果它达到了一定的标准，就获得推荐。
29. I was always regarded in the Army with a certain amount of suspicion because of my left-wing tendencies.
    由于我的左翼倾向，在军队中我总是受到一些猜疑。
30. We need to recognize that certain uses of the land upon which we live are simply wrong.
    我们需要认识到，我们对自己生活的这片土地的某些使用方式是完全错误的。

  certain confident convinced positive sure【导航词义：确信的】

  certain adj. 肯定的，确信的

〔辨析〕指确定无疑的，表示说话人有确切的理由或不容置疑的证据，语气较强，通常作表语，多用于肯定句或正式的书面语中，常可与positive 换用，但不可单独用作回答。

  confident adj. 确信的，有把握的

〔辨析〕指确信某事会以自己想要或期望的方式发生的，通常作表语。

  convinced adj. 确信的，信服的

〔辨析〕指对某事深信不疑的，通常作表语，常后接介词 of 或 that 从句。

  positive adj. 确信的，肯定的

〔辨析〕指对某事物的正确性或真实性绝对肯定的，通常作表语，可单独用作肯定回答，常后接介词 about/of 或 that 从句。

  sure adj. 确信的，确定的

〔辨析〕指主观上对某事物的正确性或真实性没有疑虑的，常可与 certain 换用，但语气稍弱，通常作表语。

adj.

for certain

• 肯定；确定；无疑
  without doubt
  1. I can't say for certain when we'll arrive.
     我说不准我们什么时候能到。

make certain (that…)

• 弄确实；弄清楚；弄明白
  to find out whether sth is definitely true
  1. I think there's a bus at 8 but you'd better call to make certain.
     好像8点有一班公共汽车，不过你最好打电话弄清楚。

make certain of sth/of doing sth

• 确保（做某事）
  to do sth in order to be sure that sth else will happen
  1. You'll have to leave soon to make certain of getting there on time.
     你得快点出发，好确保准时到达那里。

of a certain age

• 不算年轻的；年纪不轻的；中年的
  if you talk about a person being of a certain age , you mean that they are no longer young but not yet old
  1. The show appeals to an audience of a certain age.
     这个节目中年观众感兴趣。