disprove

English

Etymology

From Middle English disproven, dispreven, from Old French desprover, from des- + prover, equivalent to dis- +‎ prove.

Pronunciation

enPR: dĭs-pro͞ovʹ

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /dɪsˈpɹuːv/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /dɪsˈpɹuv/

  • Audio (Mid-Atlantic US):

    (file)

• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /dɪsˈpɹʉːv/

  • Audio (Brisbane):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -uːv

Verb

disprove (third-person singular simple present disproves, present participle disproving, simple past disproved, past participle disproved or disproven)

1. (transitive) To prove to be false or erroneous; to confute; to refute.

   disprove a theory

   disprove a hypothesis

Usage notes

• The past participle disproven is often proscribed in favor of disproved.

Antonyms

• prove

Derived terms

• disprovability
• disprovable
• disproval
• disprovement
• disprover
• undisprovable
• undisproved

 

Translations

to refute

• Arabic: دَحَضَ (ar) (daḥaḍa)
• Belarusian: абвярга́ць impf (abvjarhácʹ), абве́ргнуць pf (abvjérhnucʹ)
• Bulgarian: опровергавам (bg) (oprovergavam), оборвам (bg) (oborvam)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 駁斥 / 驳斥 (zh) (bóchì)

• Czech: vyvrátit (cs)
• Dutch: weerleggen (nl), ontkrachten (nl)
• Finnish: osoittaa vääräksi; kumota (fi)
• French: réfuter (fr), infirmer (fr)
• German: widerlegen (de)
• Greek: ανταποδεικνύω (el) (antapodeiknýo)
• Hungarian: megcáfol (hu)
• Italian: confutare (it)
• Japanese: 反駁する (ja) (はんばくする, hanbaku suru)
• Latin: refellō (la), redarguō
• Old English: unsōþian
• Portuguese: desmentir (pt), refutar (pt)
• Russian: опроверга́ть (ru) impf (oprovergátʹ), опрове́ргнуть (ru) pf (oprovérgnutʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: opovrgnuti (sh)
• Spanish: refutar (es), rebatir (es), desmentir (es), desdecir (es)
• Swedish: motbevisa (sv), vederlägga (sv)
• Tagalog: pabulaanan
• Ukrainian: спросто́вувати impf (sprostóvuvaty), спростува́ти pf (sprostuváty)
• Welsh: gwrthbrofi (cy)

Anagrams

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