approof

Noun

approof (countable and uncountable, plural approofs)

1. (archaic) trial; proof; testimony; affirmation.
   • A man so absolute in my approof, / That nature hath reserv'd small dignity, / That he enjoys not.c. 1600, Ben Jonson, Cynthia's Revels
   • His good remembrance, sir, / Lies richer in your thoughts than on his tomb; / So in approof lives not his epitaph / As in your royal speech.c. 1604–1605, William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, act 1, scene 2, lines 48–51
2. (archaic) approval; commendation
   • O perilous mouths, / That bear in them one and the selfsame tongue, / Either of condemnation or approof,c. 1603–1604, William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, act 2, scene 4, lines 172–174
   • But above all, his own works testifie of him to this day, and clearly demonstrate, that what respect the world, and what approof and commendations Authours have given him, was not affected but well deserved1640, John Gower (translator), Ovids Festivalls