אִי-וַדָּאוּת
Human beings have a need for clarity and organization – we seek certainty in order to relax and go about our day.
While certainty, in Hebrew, is וַדָּאוּת (listen and repeat), uncertainty is אִי-וַדָּאוּת (listen and repeat).
For example:
It’s difficult but necessary to live with uncertainty. listen
A lack of certainty is חֹסֶר וַדָּאוּת (listen and repeat), so that the sentence could also be written:
It’s difficult but necessary to live with a lack of certainty. listen
ודאות (listen and repeat) is related to the expression, !בְּוַדַּאי (listen and repeat) – certainly! and, in its original form in Mishnaic Hebrew, וַדַּאי (listen and repeat) – also certainly.
The word אִי (listen and repeat), when affixed to a word such as ודאות, negates that word and is the equivalent of un- or in- in English.
But when אי appears on its own, it means island.
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