cert
UK[sɜːt]US[sɜːrt]
n
(informal) A certificate or official document attesting to a fact, qualification, or completion of a course.
Etymology
The word 'cert' is a modern English slang abbreviation, originating in the early 20th century as a clipped form of 'certificate'. Its ultimate origin lies in the Latin verb 'certificare', meaning 'to make certain', which is itself a compound of 'certus' (settled, sure, determined) and the verb-forming suffix '-ficare' (to make). The Latin 'certus' derives from the past participle of 'cernere', meaning 'to sift, discern, decide', a concept rooted in the Proto-Indo-European root 'krei-', meaning 'to sieve, distinguish'. The journey from the ancient act of sifting to determine truth, to the legal concept of making certain, and finally to the informal document proving a fact, encapsulates the evolution of this concise term.
Analysis
The word 'cert' is a clipping (shortening) of the word 'certificate'. It is not formed from independent morphemes in its current form.
Examples
He finally got his teaching cert after months of study.
You'll need to show your birth cert as proof of identity.
She framed her diving cert and hung it on the wall.