disprove

/dɪsˈpruv/

/dɪsˈpruv/

Other forms: disproved; disproving; disproves

When you disprove something, you argue against it or give evidence that it's not true. A student falsely accused of cheating on a test will work hard to disprove it.

Even though it took years to be acknowledged, Galileo's theory that the planets revolve around the sun managed eventually to disprove previous ideas that the Earth was at the center of the universe. If your friends think your family is ridiculously wealthy, you can disprove this idea by showing them the tiny house you live in and the beat up old car your dad drives. The Old French source of disprove is desprover, "refute or contradict."

Definitions of disprove

1. verb

   prove to be false
   “The physicist disproved his colleagues' theories”

   synonyms: confute

   antonyms:

   prove

   establish the validity of something, as by an example, explanation or experiment

   types:

   explode

   show (a theory or claim) to be baseless, or refute and make obsolete

   controvert, rebut, refute

   prove to be false or incorrect

   falsify

   prove false

   type of:

   contradict, negate

   prove negative; show to be false