proven
adjectiveverbcommon in dialogue
- United Kingdom//ˈpɹuː.vn̩//
- United Kingdom//ˈpɹəʊ.vn̩//
- United States//ˈpɹu.vn̩//
Having been proved; having proved its value or truth.
adjective
- 1
Having been proved; having proved its value or truth.
It's a proven fact that morphine is a more effective painkiller than acetaminophen is.
Mass lexical comparison is not a proven method for demonstrating relationships between languages.
Etymology
From Scottish English, as past participle of preve, a Middle English variant of prove – compare woven (from weave) and cloven (from cleave), both of which feature -eve → -oven. Preve died out in England, but survived in Scotland, where proven developed, initially in a legal context, as in “The jury ruled that the charges were not proven.” See usage notes for historical usage patterns. Earlier, from Late Latin probō (“test, try, examine, approve, show to be good or fit, prove”, verb), from Latin probus (“good, worthy, excellent”), from Proto-Indo-European *pro-bʰuH-s (“being in front, prominent”), from *pro-, *per- (“toward”) + *bʰuH- (“to be”). Morphologically prove + -n.
verb
- 1
Also a form of provepast participle of prove
Forms
- comparative
- more proven
- superlative
- most proven
proven · Having been proved; having proved its value or truth.
proverb · A commonly used sentence expressing popular wisdom.provide · To make a living; earn money for necessities.provided · Only if (the stipulation that follows is true).