Prove
/pruːv/noun
To demonstrate the truth or validity of something by evidence or reasoning.
Did you know?The word comes from Latin *probare*, meaning “to test, try, approve,” so the idea of proof was originally about putting something through a trial, not just believing it.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pro-bhā-
“to try, test, or find good”
Latin
Latin
probare
“to test, try, approve, prove good”
Old French
Old French
prover
“to prove, test, establish”
Middle English
English
proven
“to test or demonstrate as true”
Modern English
English
prove
“to demonstrate the truth or validity of something by evidence or reasoning”