"to prove" in seven languages

Meaningto prove

Spanish

probar

/pɾoˈbaɾ/

inherited

Also 'to try, to taste'; demostrar is common for proofs.

French

prouver

/pʁuve/

inherited

Italian

provare

/proˈvare/

inherited

Also 'to try'; dimostrare is common for proofs.

Portuguese

provar

/pɾoˈvah/

inherited

Also 'to try, to taste, to try on'; comprovar is common for proofs.

Romanian

dovedi

/doveˈdi/

other source · Slavic (Old Church Slavonic dovesti 'to lead to')

Catalan

provar

/pɾuˈba/

inherited

Also 'to try'; demostrar is common for proofs.

English

prove

/pɹuv/

from Latin/French · Old French prover

English → Italianto proveprovareCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

PROBĀRE‘to test, find good’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

PROBĀRE was 'to test and find good', so in the sisters one verb covers both 'to try' and 'to prove'; English split it into prove and probe.

English relatives: proof, probe, probable, approve