different between prove vs proofs
prove
English
Etymology 1
From Middle English proven, from Old English pr?fian (“to esteem, regard as, evince, try, prove”) and Old French prover (“to prove”), both from Latin prob? (“test, try, examine, approve, show to be good or fit, prove”, verb), from probus (“good, worthy, excellent”), from Proto-Indo-European *pro-b?uH-s (“being in front, prominent”), from *pro-, *per- (“toward”) + *b?uH- (“to be”). Displaced native Middle English sothen (“to prove”), from Old English s?þian (“to prove”). More at for, be, soothe.
Pronunciation
- enPR: pro?ov, IPA(key): /p?u?v/
- Rhymes: -u?v
Alternative forms
- proove
Verb
prove (third-person singular simple present proves, present participle proving, simple past proved, past participle proved or proven)
- (transitive) To demonstrate that something is true or viable; to give proof for.
- (intransitive) To turn out; to manifest.
- (copulative) To turn out to be.
- 1964, Jean Merrill, The Pushcart War, 2014 The New York Review Children's Collection edition, ?ISBN, chapter 33, page 199:
- This battle did not take place in the streets. It took place entirely in words, and it was to prove the turning point in the war.
- 1964, Jean Merrill, The Pushcart War, 2014 The New York Review Children's Collection edition, ?ISBN, chapter 33, page 199:
- (transitive) To put to the test, to make trial of.
- 1609, William Shakespeare, Sonnet 26:
- Then may I dare to boast how I do love thee,
- Till then not show my head where thou may'st prove me.
- 1609, William Shakespeare, Sonnet 26:
- (transitive) To ascertain or establish the genuineness or validity of; to verify.
- to prove a will
- (archaic, transitive) To experience.
- (printing, dated, transitive) To take a trial impression of; to take a proof of.
- to prove a page
- Alternative form of proof (“allow (dough) to rise; test the activeness of (yeast)”)
Usage notes
As the past participle of prove, proven is sometimes still discouraged, and proved is preferred (“have proved” rather than “have proven”). However, they are both about equally common in US English, and both are used and considered correct in UK English. In UK English, “proved” is more common, but not, for example, in the very common expression “innocent until proven guilty” (rarely *“innocent until proved guilty”).
In addition, as an attributive adjective, proven is much more commonly used, and proved is widely proscribed – “a proven method”, not *“a proved method”.
Historically, proved is the older form, while proven arose as a Scottish variant – see etymology. Used in legal writing from the mid-17th century, it entered literary usage more slowly, only becoming significant in the 19th century, with the poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson among the earliest frequent users (presumably for reasons of meter). In the 19th century, proven was widely discouraged, and remained significantly less common through the mid-20th century (proved being used approximately four times as often); by the late 20th century it came to be used about equally often in US English.
Conjugation
See also
- the exception proves the rule
References
- Paul Brians (2009) , “proved”, in Common Errors in English Usage, 2nd edition, Wilsonville, Or.: William, James & Company, ?ISBN
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
Noun
prove (plural proves)
- (baking) The process of dough proofing.
- 2009, Paul Allam and David McGuinness, Bourke Street Bakery: the ultimate baking companion:
- You may also need to think about what the prove is doing to the loaf of bread — it is warming the dough and making it moist, allowing it to rise […]
- 2009, Paul Allam and David McGuinness, Bourke Street Bakery: the ultimate baking companion:
Etymology 2
Simple past form of proove, conjugated as a Germanic strong verb, on the pattern of choose ? chose.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /p???v/
Verb
prove
- simple past tense of proove
Further reading
- prove in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- prove in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
Anagrams
- Prevo, pervo
Dutch
Alternative forms
- preuve (chiefly Northern Dutch)
Etymology
From Middle Dutch prove, from Middle French preuve, from Old French prueve, from Medieval Latin provenda, from older praebenda.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?pro?.v?/
- Hyphenation: pro?ve
- Rhymes: -o?v?
Noun
prove f (plural proven, diminutive provetje n)
- A gift out of love
- A life-long maintenance
Derived terms
- provenier
Friulian
Etymology
From Latin proba.
Noun
prove f (plural provis)
- proof
- test, examination, trial
- evidence
- try
Related terms
- provâ
Italian
Noun
prove f
- plural of prova
Anagrams
- pover
Ladino
Etymology
From Old Spanish [Term?], from Latin pauper, pauperem, from Proto-Indo-European *peh?w- (“few, small”). Compare Spanish pobre.
Adjective
prove (Latin spelling)
- poor
Portuguese
Pronunciation
- Rhymes: -?vi
Verb
prove
- first-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of provar
- third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present subjunctive of provar
- third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of provar
- third-person singular (você) negative imperative of provar
prove From the web:
- what proves a quadrilateral is a parallelogram
- what proves to be paris's fatal flaw
- what proved harry was the rightful owner
- what proverb does bilbo invent
- what proved to be the salvation of jamestown
- what proves the big bang theory
- what proves a parallelogram
- what proves residency
proofs
English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /p?u?fs/
Noun
proofs
- plural of proof.
- Samples of the copy and layout of a printed document for review by the author or a proofreader before mass printing.
Verb
proofs
- Third-person singular simple present indicative form of proof
See also
- prove
- proves
proofs From the web:
- what proofs are required for driving license
- what proofs are there for general relativity
- what proofs are required for pan card
- what proofs are required for passport
- what proofs are required for 498a
- what proofs are required for income certificate
- what proofs are required for 80d
- what proofs are required for aadhar card
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