What does "prove" mean?
The process of dough proofing.
Prove
/pɹuːv/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The process of dough proofing.
- Grammar: prove is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: demonstrate, establish, affirm, afford proof of.
- Useful contrasts: rumored, seeming robustness, undemonstrated.
- Usage evidence: What do you believe is true even though you cannot prove it?
How to use "prove"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "prove" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "prove" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "prove" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "prove" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "prove" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "demonstrate" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "prove", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The process of dough proofing.
"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 […]"
Verb
- 1 To demonstrate that something is true or viable; to give proof for; to bear out; to testify. transitive
"[VV]e are able with playne demonſtration to proue, and vvith reaſon to perſvvade that in tymes paſt our fayth vvas alike, that then vve preached thinges correſpondent vnto the forme of faith already published of vs, ſo that none in this behalfe can repyne or gaynesay vs."
- 2 simple past of proove form-of, past
- 3 establish the validity of something, as by an example, explanation or experiment wordnet
- 4 To turn out; to manifest. intransitive
"It proved to be a cold day."
- 5 prove formally; demonstrate by a mathematical, formal proof wordnet
Show 14 more definitions
- 6 To turn out to be. copulative
"Have an exit strategy should your calculations prove incorrect."
- 7 obtain probate of wordnet
- 8 To put to the test, to make trial of. transitive
"They took the experimental car to the proving-grounds."
- 9 provide evidence for wordnet
- 10 To ascertain or establish the genuineness or validity of; to verify. transitive
"to prove a will"
- 11 take a trial impression of wordnet
- 12 To experience. archaic, transitive
"Where she, captived long, great woes did prove."
- 13 cause to puff up with a leaven wordnet
- 14 To take a trial impression of; to take a proof of. dated, transitive
"to prove a page"
- 15 increase in volume wordnet
- 16 Alternative form of proof (“allow (dough) to rise; test the activeness of (yeast); pressure-test (a firearm)”). alt-of, alternative
- 17 put to the test, as for its quality, or give experimental use to wordnet
- 18 To determine by experiment which effects a substance causes when ingested.
- 19 be shown or be found to be wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"What do you believe is true even though you cannot prove it?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "prove"?
Common synonyms include: demonstrate, establish, affirm, afford proof of, any evidence, argue.
How do you use "prove" in a sentence?
What do you believe is true even though you cannot prove it?
How do you pronounce "prove"?
Pronounced /pɹuːv/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English proven, from Old English prōfian (“to esteem, regard as, evince, try, prove”) and Old French prover (“to prove”), both from Latin probō (“test, try, examine, approve, show to be good or fit, prove”, verb), from probus (“good, worthy, excellent”), from Proto-Indo-European *pro-bʰuH-s (“being in front, prominent”), from *pro-, *per- (“toward”) + *bʰuH- (“to be”). Displaced native Middle English sothen (“to prove”), from Old English sōþian (“to prove”). Doublet of probe. More at for, be, soothe.
Etymology 2
Simple past form of proove, conjugated as a Germanic strong verb, on the pattern of choose → chose.