demonstrate

[dem-uhn-streyt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR demonstrate ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), dem·on·strat·ed, dem·on·strat·ing.

to make evident or establish by arguments or reasoning; prove: to demonstrate a philosophical principle.

to describe, explain, or illustrate by examples, specimens, experiments, or the like: to demonstrate the force of gravity by dropping an object.

to manifest or exhibit; show: He demonstrated his courage by his actions in battle.

to display openly or publicly, as feelings: to demonstrate one's anger by slamming a door.

to exhibit the operation or use of (a device, process, product, or the like), usually to a purchaser or prospect: to demonstrate an automobile.

verb (used without object), dem·on·strat·ed, dem·on·strat·ing.

to make, give, or take part in, a demonstration: The pickets required a license to demonstrate.

Military. to attack or make a show of force to deceive an enemy.

Origin of demonstrate

1545–55; < Latin dēmonstrātus, past participle of dēmonstrāre to show, point out, equivalent to dē- de- + monstrāre to show, verbal derivative of monstrum sign, portent

Related formsdem·on·strat·ed·ly, adverbcoun·ter·dem·on·strate, verb (used without object), coun·ter·dem·on·strat·ed, coun·ter·dem·on·strat·ing.pre·dem·on·strate, verb (used with object), pre·dem·on·strat·ed, pre·dem·on·strat·ing.re·dem·on·strate, verb, re·dem·on·strat·ed, re·dem·on·strat·ing.sub·dem·on·strate, verb (used with object), sub·dem·on·strat·ed, sub·dem·on·strat·ing.un·dem·on·strat·ed, adjectivewell-dem·on·strat·ed, adjective

Synonyms for demonstrate

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR demonstrate ON THESAURUS.COM

1. show, confirm, verify, corroborate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for demonstrate

exhibit, prove, expose, try, indicate, determine, test, validate, manifest, establish, teach, express, describe, confirm, protest, evince, authenticate, flaunt, evidence, debunk

Examples from the Web for demonstrate

Contemporary Examples of demonstrate

He was trying, I think, to demonstrate balance and equivalence.
Memo to Cops: Criticisms Aren’t Attacks
Michael Tomasky
December 28, 2014
Over the course of the year, Klaus would repeatedly, through word and deed, demonstrate his sympathies with Putin.
Vaclav Klaus, Libertarian Hero, Has His Wings Clipped by Cato Institute
James Kirchick
December 22, 2014
A classroom experiment seeks to demonstrate what it looks like.
What Is Privilege?
The Daily Beast Video
December 11, 2014
One day, he took a monk with a cleanly shaven head and had him walk around a light bulb to demonstrate this theory.
From Fashion Player to Photographer Monk
Nina Strochlic
December 3, 2014
For the Democrats to win as the Government Party, activist government must demonstrate that it both works and is trustworthy.
2016 Is No Democratic Slam Dunk
Lloyd Green
December 1, 2014

Historical Examples of demonstrate

Anyone else can demonstrate it who chooses to make the experiment.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
We should in vain, therefore, attempt to demonstrate its falsehood.
An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding
David Hume
You want to demonstrate that you are superior, and you cannot do it.
The Slave Of The Lamp
Henry Seton Merriman
So much for the first point which I wished to explain and demonstrate.
A Theological-Political Treatise [Part I]
Benedict of Spinoza
At all events, it is as impossible to demonstrate the non-existence of the one unit as the other.
Life: Its True Genesis
R. W. Wright

British Dictionary definitions for demonstrate

demonstrate

verb

(tr) to show, manifest, or prove, esp by reasoning, evidence, etcit is easy to demonstrate the truth of this proposition

(tr) to evince; reveal the existence ofthe scheme later demonstrated a fatal flaw

(tr) to explain or illustrate by experiment, example, etc

(tr) to display, operate, and explain the workings of (a machine, product, etc)

(intr) to manifest support, protest, etc, by public parades or rallies

(intr) to be employed as a demonstrator of machinery, etc

(intr) military to make a show of force, esp in order to deceive one's enemy

Word Origin for demonstrate

C16: from Latin dēmonstrāre to point out, from monstrāre to show

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for demonstrate

1550s, "to point out," from Latin demonstratus, past participle of demonstrare (see demonstration). Meaning "to point out by argument or deduction" is from 1570s. Related: Demonstrated; demonstrating.