uncertain

adj
/ʌnˈsɜːtən/UK/ʌnˈsɜɹ.tən/US

Etymology

From Middle English uncerteyn. By surface analysis, un- + certain.

  1. inherited from uncerteyn

Definitions

  1. Not certain

    Not certain; unsure.

    • Conſider man without the protection and conduct of a ſuperior Being, and he is ſecure of nothing that he enjoys in this world, and uncertain of every thing that he hopes for.
  2. Not known for certain

    Not known for certain; questionable.

    • Tomorrow's weather is uncertain.
  3. Not yet determined

    Not yet determined; undecided.

  4. + 4 more definitions
    1. Variable and subject to change.

    2. Fitful or unsteady.

    3. Unpredictable or capricious.

      • O, woman! in our hours of ease, / Uncertain, coy, and hard to please, / And variable as the shade / By the light quivering aspen made; […]
    4. Something uncertain.

      • Thinking about the uncertain refines our perception of the certain, and generally this takes place in a framework in which the uncertain is the future and the certain is the present.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at uncertain. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01uncertain02questionable03open04uncovered05covered06dealt07deal08indefinite

A definitional loop anchored at uncertain. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

8 hops · closes at uncertain

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA