disprove
v.to show that something is not true or correct. You use this when you have evidence that contradicts a statement or a theory.
v.to demonstrate that a statement, theory, or belief is false or invalid. Transitive — requires a direct object representing the claim being refuted.
“The new evidence helps to disprove the old theory.”
“Scientists conducted a series of experiments to disprove the hypothesis that the plant could survive without sunlight.”
“While the initial data suggested a correlation, subsequent peer-reviewed research was able to disprove the link between the two variables, leading to a complete revision of the original model.”
“The results also do not disprove an idea proposed by study co-author Professor Sir Roger Penrose (University of Oxford).”
“It’s an idea that some mathematicians believe is true but nobody has been able to prove or disprove.”
From Middle English disproven, dispreven, from Old French desprover, from des- + prover, equivalent to dis- + prove.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.