So why do we have four and fourteen, but not fourty? Update: So I guess really the answer is that, unlike a lot of other words that may or may not be spelled with a 'u' in "recent" times (i.e. when American English became a standard), this has been spelt as "forty" for ages.
I'm wondering why we have double letters in words that make the same sound as if it were a single letter. For example apple. The pp makes a p sound, and sound the same as if the word was spelt aple...
The Boston Globe: A man of letters on the power of words
The meaning of CERTAIN is fixed, settled. How to use certain in a sentence. Synonym Discussion of Certain.
CERTAIN definition: 1. having no doubt or knowing exactly that something is true, or known to be true, correct, exact…. Learn more.
Define certain. certain synonyms, certain pronunciation, certain translation, English dictionary definition of certain. adj. 1. Definite; fixed: set aside a certain sum each week.
CERTAIN definition: free from doubt or reservation; confident; sure. See examples of certain used in a sentence.
certain: Definite; fixed. From Middle English certain, certein, from Old French certain, from Vulgar Latin unattested form *certānus, extended form of Latin certus ("fixed, resolved, certain"), of the same origin as cretus, past participle of cernere ("to separate, perceive, decide"). Displaced native Middle English wis, iwis ("certain, sure") (from Old English, ġewiss ("certain, sure") and ...
Definition of Certain in the Definitions.net dictionary. Meaning of Certain. What does Certain mean? Information and translations of Certain in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web.