2 definitions found
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Confirmation \Con`fir*ma"tion\, n. [F. confirmation, L.
confirmatio.]
1. The act of confirming or strengthening; the act of
establishing, ratifying, or sanctioning; as, the
confirmation of an appointment.
Their blood is shed In confirmation of the noblest
claim. --Cowper.
2. That which confirms; that which gives new strength or
assurance; as to a statement or belief; additional
evidence; proof; convincing testimony.
Trifles light as air Are to the jealous
confirmations strong As proofs of holy writ. --Shak.
3. (Eccl.) A rite supplemental to baptism, by which a person
is admitted, through the laying on of the hands of a
bishop, to the full privileges of the church, as in the
Roman Catholic, the Episcopal Church, etc.
This ordinance is called confirmation, because they
who duly receive it are confirmed or strengthened
for the fulfillment of their Christian duties, by
the grace therein bestowed upon them. --Hook.
4. (Law) A conveyance by which a voidable estate is made sure
and not voidable, or by which a particular estate is
increased; a contract, express or implied, by which a
person makes that firm and binding which was before
voidable.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
confirmation
n 1: additional proof that something that was believed (some fact
or hypothesis or theory) is correct; "fossils provided
further confirmation of the evolutionary theory" [syn: {verification},
{check}, {substantiation}]
2: information that confirms or verifies
3: making something valid by formally ratifying or confirming
it; "the ratification of the treaty"; "confirmation of the
appointment" [syn: {ratification}]
4: a ceremony held in the synagogue (usually at Pentecost) to
admit as adult members of the Jewish community young men
and women who have successfully completed a course of
study in Judaism
5: a sacrament admitting a baptized person to full
participation in the church