Word.ws English Dictionary

proved

/ˈpɹuːvd/

proved is the simple past and past participle of prove.

Meaning of prove

Verb

prove (third-person singular simple present proves, present participle proving, simple past proved, past participle proved or proven)

  1. (transitive) To demonstrate that something is true or viable; to give proof for; to bear out; to testify.
    • [VV]e are able with playne demonſtration to proue, and vvith reaſon to perſvvade that in tymes paſt our fayth vvas alike, that then vve preached thinges correſpondent vnto the forme of faith already published of vs, ſo that none in this behalfe can repyne or gaynesay vs.1577, Socrates Scholasticus [i.e., Socrates of Constantinople], “Constantinus the Emperour Summoneth the Nicene Councell, it was Held at Nicæa a Citie of Bythnia for the Debatinge of the Controuersie...
    Synonyms:
    substantiate
  2. (intransitive) To turn out; to manifest.
    • It proved to be a cold day.
  3. (copulative) To turn out to be.
    • Have an exit strategy should your calculations prove incorrect.
  4. (transitive) To put to the test, to make trial of.
    • They took the experimental car to the proving-grounds.
  5. (transitive) To ascertain or establish the genuineness or validity of; to verify.
    • to prove a will
  6. (archaic, transitive) To experience.
    • Where she, captived long, great woes did prove.1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book IV, Canto VI”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 34

See all 9 meanings of prove

Synonyms of proved

Words formed from proved

Phrases with proved

Words that rhyme with proved

Questions about proved

What is proved the simple past and past participle of?
Proved is the simple past and past participle of prove.
How do you pronounce proved?
Proved is pronounced /ˈpɹuːvd/.

Words near proved in the dictionary

  1. provect
  2. provection
  3. provections
  4. provector
  5. provectors
  6. proved
  7. proved out
  8. proveditor
  9. proveditors
  10. provedly
  11. provedor

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: proved (page history and authors); prove (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-proved.ogg.

Cite this entry: “proved.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/proved. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.