falsify

[fawl-suh-fahy]

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verb (used with object), fal·si·fied, fal·si·fy·ing.

to make false or incorrect, especially so as to deceive: to falsify income-tax reports.
to alter fraudulently.
to represent falsely: He falsified the history of his family to conceal his humble origins.

to show or prove to be false; disprove: to falsify a theory.

verb (used without object), fal·si·fied, fal·si·fy·ing.

to make false statements.

Origin of falsify

1400–50; late Middle English falsifien < Middle French falsifier < Late Latin falsificāre. See false, -ify

Related formsfal·si·fi·a·ble, adjectivefal·si·fi·a·bil·i·ty, nounfal·si·fi·ca·tion

[fawl-suh-fi-key-shuh n] /ˈfɔl sə fɪˈkeɪ ʃən/, nounfal·si·fi·er, nounnon·fal·si·fi·a·ble, adjectiveun·fal·si·fi·a·ble, adjectiveun·fal·si·fied, adjective

Synonyms for falsify

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1, 3. See misrepresent. 4. rebut, discredit, refute, confute, controvert.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for falsify

contravene, pervert, exaggerate, contradict, misstate, distort, deceive, fake, forge, counterfeit, traverse, color, twist, prevaricate, lie, doctor, equivocate, gloss, fib, change

Examples from the Web for falsify

Contemporary Examples of falsify

The scientific method cannot establish truths; it can only falsify hypotheses.
Bring Science to Public Policy
David Frum
April 25, 2012
Other families go to much more extreme lengths, like those who falsify applications or tax returns.
Gaming the Financial-Aid System
Kathleen Kingsbury
January 4, 2010

Historical Examples of falsify

To ignore it, and it is too commonly ignored, is to falsify every issue.
The Truth About Woman
C. Gasquoine Hartley
To do that would be to falsify history and disregard the artistic canons.
Sir Henry Morgan, Buccaneer
Cyrus Townsend Brady
What motive could any of us have had to mislead or falsify the history of the war.
A Military Genius
Sarah Ellen Blackwell
But we must not falsify observation to avoid theoretical difficulties.
The Analysis of Mind
Bertrand Russell
To forget it, and it is commonly forgotten, is to falsify every issue.
First and Last Things
H. G. Wells

British Dictionary definitions for falsify

falsify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied (tr)

to make (a report, evidence, accounts, etc) false or inaccurate by alteration, esp in order to deceive
to prove false; disprove

Derived Formsfalsifiable, adjectivefalsification (ˌfɔːlsɪfɪˈkeɪʃən), nounfalsifier, noun

Word Origin for falsify

C15: from Old French falsifier, from Late Latin falsificāre, from Latin falsus false + facere to make

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 falsify

mid-15c., "to prove false," from Middle French falsifier (15c.), from Late Latin falsificare (see falsify). Meaning "to make false" is from c.1500. Earlier verb was simply falsen (c.1200). Related: Falsified; falsifying.