The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Notify \No"ti*fy\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Notified; p. pr. & vb.
   n. Notifying.] [F. notifier, L. notificare; notus known (p.
   p. of noscere to known) + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See
   Know, and -fy.]
   [1913 Webster]
   1. To make known; to declare; to publish; as, to notify a
      fact to a person.
      [1913 Webster]

            No law can bind till it be notified or promulged.
                                                  --Sowth.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To give notice to; to inform by notice; to apprise; as,
      the constable has notified the citizens to meet at the
      city hall; the bell notifies us of the time of meeting.
      [1913 Webster]

            The President of the United States has notified the
            House of Representatives that he has approved and
            signed the act.                       --Journal of
                                                  the Senate, U.
                                                  S.
      [1913 Webster]

   Note: This application of notify has been condemned; but it
         is in constant good use in the United States, and in
         perfect accordance with the use of certify.
         [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Certify \Cer"ti*fy\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Certified; p. pr. &
   vb. n. Certifying.] [F. certifier, LL. certificare; L.
   certus certain + facere to make. See Certain, and cf.
   Certificate, v. t.]
   1. To give cetain information to; to assure; to make certain.
      [1913 Webster]

            We certify the king, that . . . thou shalt have no
            portion on this side the river.       --Ezra iv. 16.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To give certain information of; to make certain, as a
      fact; to verify. --Hammond.
      [1913 Webster]

            The industry of science at once certifies and
            greatly extends our knowledge of the vastness of the
            creation.                             --I. Taylor.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. To testify to in writing; to make a declaration
      concerning, in writing, under hand, or hand and seal.
      [1913 Webster]

            The judges shall certify their opinion to the
            chancellor, and upon such certificate the decree is
            usually founded.                      --Blackstone.
      [1913 Webster]

   Certified check, A bank check, the validity of which is
      certified by the bank on which it is drawn.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

certify
    v 1: provide evidence for; stand as proof of; show by one's
         behavior, attitude, or external attributes; "His high fever
         attested to his illness"; "The buildings in Rome manifest a
         high level of architectural sophistication"; "This decision
         demonstrates his sense of fairness" [syn: attest,
         certify, manifest, demonstrate, evidence]
    2: guarantee payment on; of checks
    3: authorize officially; "I am licensed to practice law in this
       state" [syn: license, licence, certify] [ant:
       decertify, derecognise, derecognize]
    4: guarantee as meeting a certain standard; "certified grade AAA
       meat" [syn: certify, endorse, indorse]
    5: declare legally insane

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

142 Moby Thesaurus words for "certify":
   OK, accept, accredit, acknowledge, affirm, allege, amen,
   and candle, approve, ascertain, assert, assert under oath,
   asseverate, assure, attest, authenticate, authorize, autograph,
   aver, avouch, avow, back, back up, be sponsor for, bear out,
   bear witness, bolster, bond, book, buttress, certificate, charter,
   cinch, circumstantiate, classify, clear up, clinch, commission,
   confirm, corroborate, cosign, countersecure, countersign, decide,
   declare, depone, depose, determine, disclose, dismiss all doubt,
   document, empower, enable, endorse, enfranchise, ensure, entitle,
   establish, find out, fix, fortify, franchise, get at,
   give evidence, give official sanction, give permission, give power,
   give the go-ahead, give the imprimatur, give thumbs up, guarantee,
   guaranty, initial, insure, kiss the book, legalize, legitimize,
   license, make certain, make no doubt, make no mistake, make sure,
   make sure of, nail down, notarize, pass, pass on, pass upon,
   patent, permit, privilege, probate, profess, prove, ratify,
   reassure, reinforce, remove all doubt, rubber stamp, sanction,
   say amen to, seal, second, secure, see that, see to it,
   set at rest, settle, sign, sign and seal, sign for, sort out,
   sponsor, stand behind, stand up for, strengthen, subscribe to,
   substantiate, support, sustain, swear, swear and affirm,
   swear by bell, swear the truth, swear to, swear to God,
   swear to goodness, testify, undergird, undersign, underwrite,
   uphold, validate, verify, visa, vise, vouch, vouch for, vouchsafe,
   vow, warrant, witness