Affirmation is one of the most widely popular words in self-help and positive thinking. Many people think it is something you keep repeating until you believe it and accept it, but that is not how it works. Of course, people can still say this, but an essential factor to consider here is what defines Affirmation.
Affirmation refers to a word or statement that stresses the importance of your beliefs, goals, and values. Affirmation is the repetition of truth or a positive thought to oneself.
However, with all elements in existence, Affirmation means different things to different individuals. There is an element that ties us together when we talk about these kinds of words and the attempts to understand them. And that element revolves around the exact notion of Affirmation (or whatever word) itself.
What is the Meaning of Affirmation?
Affirmation means a statement of personal belief or intention repeated by a person to come to believe this statement eventually. Individuals can do this as meditative, contemplative, or religious practices.
Affirmation is a self-help technique that involves repeating phrases designed to impact your thinking and behavior positively. It is also a term used to describe the repetition of a phrase or statement.
Affirmations can be used in many different situations and can have powerful effects on our lives. A person repeats the affirmed statement until he sees or believes it as truth. This process is a kind of “programming” or “conditioning.” By repeating an affirmation repeatedly, you are programming your mind to believe the Affirmation to be true.
Repeating words as a kind of mental conditioning can create positive results in many areas of life: mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. It is a core spiritual practice of many religions.
Affirmation is living life with positive thoughts, faith, and trust in the good. It is a powerful tool to change how you think about yourself and your life. A positive affirmation creates a new belief, changes a behavior, or even gain confidence in an area of your life where you need it most.
How to use Affirmation in a Sentence?
“Affirmation” can be used in different ways and different expressions. Let’s talk about how you can use Affirmation in a sentence. Below is a descriptive sentence for Affirmation:
- “Affirmation” can be used as a statement that asserts as authentic or correct. It replaces the synonyms: confirmation, ratification, corroboration, substantiation, validation, etc., in this statement. For example: “the team adopted the coach’s plan as an affirmation of their strategy.”
- “Affirmation” can be something declared to be accurate; “they received corroboration from an eyewitness”; “he sought evidence which would validate his suspicions.”
- “In religious practices like Judaism, it is an act of accepting or embracing Judaism and the Jewish faith. For example, “the conversion process was smooth”; “the mass conversion to Islam.”
- “Affirmation” can be used for self-motivation. For example, “I can do this,” “I have the power to choose the life I want,” “I am wealthy,” “I am healthy.”
Ten Examples of Affirmation in a Sentence
Here are ten examples of the word ‘affirmation’ used in a sentence:
- “Affirmation is the process of repeating a statement of affirmation to yourself.”
- “When you give yourself Affirmation, you are telling yourself that you are capable, good, and deserving of the things that you want. And by continuously repeating it to yourself over time, you begin to ingrain it into your thoughts and mind, such that you begin to act like it.”
- “She quickly affirmed her commitment to the job after being offered the promotion.”
- “His attitude is an affirmation of avarice.”
- “The meeting was short, so we didn’t have time to make any affirmations about subsequent plans.”
- “The audience nodded their heads — several times— in affirmation to all that the speaker said throughout the conference.”
- “Check out this e-book with hundred words of daily affirmation to keep you motivated throughout the day.”
- “Her behavior just affirms how vacuous she is. “
- “The CEO commented that the structure of the speech the newly recruited head of department presented was an affirmation that he was just a beginner.”
- “I felt so bad for what he did, but I gave him some words of affirmation in regards to the scholarship slot still being available for him.”
- ” I say my affirmations every morning while riding my segway to work.”
- “Daily personal affirmations are best done in the morning hours when the mind is quite relaxed.”
- “Circumstances would surely test the affirmations you have concerning your faith, but you have to stay focused to overcome.”
How Do You Spell Affirmation?
We can affirm that the spelling of a word is correct when the alphabet letters that make up that word have been correctly identified and placed in the proper order. The term may be vocalized or written, but the correct letters must be present and in the appropriate order in any of such forms.
The correct spelling of “Affirmation” as an English word is [A F F I R M A T I O N]. The spelling is universal across all types of English spelling. It retains its form when spelled across British and American English.
How Do You Pronounce Affirmation?
Here we look for the correct way to say “affirmation” in English. The sequence of sounds produced as determined by the correct placement of stress, intonation, and other vital factors give the proper way to speak a word.
The Correct pronunciation for the word “affirmation” is [ˌafəmˈe͡ɪʃən], [ˌafəmˈeɪʃən], [ˌa_f_ə_m_ˈeɪ_ʃ_ə_n].
How Many Syllables Are in Affirmation?
A syllable is simply the number of times we hear a vowel sound when we correctly pronounce a word. We also see it as a vowel sound surrounded by consonants.
The English word “affirmation” has four syllables with that basic description. It is represented as “af-fir-ma-tion” when divided according to its syllable structure, having a primary and secondary syllabic stress on “ma” and “af” respectively.
The vowels are the most resonant sounds when a word is pronounced. The consonants are less resonant due to the obstruction experienced during their pronunciation. However, a blend of these during articulation gives the number of syllables that make up a word. In this case, we hear a vowel sound four times when we pronounce “affirmation.”
In addition, the strength it provides becomes viable only when we correctly decode the four syllables that best express it; otherwise, the correct spelling of this word, “affirmation,” would be missed by an English language user in a sentence. And when this occurs, comprehension of a sentence becomes difficult for a reader or listener, as the case may be.
History & Etymology of Affirmation
Making efforts to trace the root of a word in a language helps to give a clear origin of that word. These efforts link that word and similar words either traced to the same root or not together. This linkage provides a better comprehension of a word’s meaning and usage.
The idea of using Affirmation stems from two sources — pragmatism and non-physical science. Pragmatic origins are rooted in Affirmation by various self-help gurus who claim that positive thinking can lead to success. Non-physical science originated because the human mind cannot understand the internal and external environment to make absolute rational sense.
The history of the word “affirmation” can be traced by a user of the language back to Latin and Anglo-French, where it comprises of ‘ad’ and ‘firmo,’ meaning to affirm or strengthen. “Affirmare” means “to approve or go with” in Latin. Affirmation has a very interesting derivation. It comes from the Latin word “affirmare” which itself comes from ad (to) + firmare (to make firm). The prefix ad- is a dative marker meaning “to” or “towards,” so “affirmation” in this context means approaching towards something from an earlier direction which makes it a significant act of moving forward in that thing.
Affirmation Synonyms
- Confirmation
- Assertion
- Reconfirmation
- Avowing
Affirmation Antonyms
- Negation
- Dispute
- Refutation
- Contradiction
When Was Affirmation First Used?
As solemn declarations, researchers believed affirmations to have originated from the work of a French psychotherapist, Emily Coue, who employed them expressly to relieve his patients having emotional or mental setbacks. He required his patients to repeat certain words which he believed had a remarkable effect on their state.
However, according to Merriam Webster Dictionary, the first known use of “affirmation” in the English language was in the 15th century. Its use described an action – the head nodding to affirm or confidently say that something was true or correct.
Beyond its usage to show validation, the word extended to reveal further or communicate a strong belief in or dedication to something of great relevance.
Final Thoughts
As one of the most widely popular words in self-help and positive thinking, its use is majorly amongst psychotherapists and, more recently, neuroscientists to help change the unconscious thoughts of their patients. For the French psychotherapist, he required his patients to repeat words of Affirmation at the start and end of every day to help their state.
In sentences, the presence of the word itself validates a pre-conceived notion, opinion or idea earlier communicated. As stated by the meaning of its Latin root word, it strengthens whatever idea, thought, or intention in a sentence.
Shawn Manaher is the founder and CEO of The Content Authority. He’s one part content manager, one part writing ninja organizer, and two parts leader of top content creators. You don’t even want to know what he calls pancakes.