disprove

American  

[dis-proov] / dɪsˈpruv /

verb (used with object)

disproved, disproving

1. to prove (an assertion, claim, etc.) to be false or wrong; refute; invalidate.

   I disproved his claim.

   Synonyms:

   confute, negate, contradict, discredit

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disprove British  

/ dɪsˈpruːv /

verb

1. (tr) to show (an assertion, claim, etc) to be incorrect

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Other Word Forms

• disprovable adjective
• disproval noun
• disprover noun
• undisprovable adjective
• undisproved adjective

Etymology

Origin of disprove

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Old French desprover, equivalent to des- dis- ¹ ( def. ) + prover prove

Example Sentences

Deutsche Bank analyst Melissa Weathers wrote recently that investors were likely exercising more caution “given past memory bust cycles,” adding that those fears are “difficult to disprove in the near term.”

From MarketWatch

Private-credit managers are trying to disprove a negative—and it has created the biggest upheaval for the $1 trillion market since it came on the scene after the financial crisis.

From Barron's

“We see this cyclical caution from investors as prudent given past memory bust cycles, and acknowledge that the bear case is difficult to disprove in the near-term,” Weathers writes.

From The Wall Street Journal

I go back to, and this is the conversation I have internally as well, the hardest thing to disprove is a negative.

From The Wall Street Journal

Adobe’s fiscal first-quarter results largely cleared Wall Street’s bar, but its modest earnings beat for the period wasn’t enough to disprove the narrative around artificial-intelligence disruption that’s weighed on software stocks.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• belie
• confound
• contradict
• discredit
• impugn
• invalidate
• negate
• rebut
• refute