Deduce vs Prove - What's the difference?
deduce | prove |
To reach a conclusion by applying rules of logic to given premises.
* Alexander Pope
* John Locke
* Sir Walter Scott
(obsolete) To take away; to deduct; to subtract.
(obsolete, Latinism) To lead forth.
* Selden
To demonstrate that something is true or viable; to give proof for.
{{quote-Fanny Hill, part=3
, Mr. H …, whom no distinctions of that sort seemed to disturb, scarce gave himself or me breathing time from the last encounter, but, as if he had task'd himself to prove that the appearances of his vigour were not signs hung out in vain, in a few minutes he was in a condition for renewing the onset}}
* {{quote-news, year=2012, date=August 5, author=Nathan Rabin
, title= * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-07, author=(Gary Younge)
, volume=188, issue=26, page=18, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly)
, title= To turn out; to manifest.
(copulative) To turn out to be.
* {{quote-news, year=2012, date=May 5, author=Phil McNulty, work=BBC Sport
, title= To put to the test, to make trial of.
To ascertain or establish the genuineness or validity of; to verify.
(archaic) To experience
* Spenser
(printing, dated, transitive) To take a trial impression of; to take a proof of.
(proove)
In transitive terms the difference between deduce and prove
is that deduce is to reach a conclusion by applying rules of logic to given premises while prove is to put to the test, to make trial of.deduce
English
Verb
- O goddess, say, shall I deduce my rhymes / From the dire nation in its early times?
- Reasoning is nothing but the faculty of deducing unknown truths from principles already known.
- See what regard will be paid to the pedigree which deduces your descent from kings and conquerors.
- to deduce a part from the whole
- (Ben Jonson)
- He should hither deduce a colony.
Usage notes
For example, from the premises "all good people believe in the tooth fairy" and "Jimmy does not believe in the tooth fairy", we deduce the conclusion "Jimmy is not a good person". This particular form of deduction is called a syllogism. Note that in this case we reach a false conclusion by correct deduction from a false premise.Antonyms
* (reach a conclusion by applying rules of logic)Synonyms
* (reach a conclusion by applying rules of logic)Anagrams
* * ----prove
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) proven, from (etyl) . More at (l), (l), (l).Alternative forms
* prooveVerb
TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “I Love Lisa”(season 4, episode 15; originally aired 02/11/1993) , passage=Valentine’s Day means different things for different people. For Homer, it means forking over a hundred dollars for a dusty box of chocolates at the Kwik-E-Mart after characteristically forgetting the holiday yet again. For Ned, it’s another opportunity to prove his love for his wife. Most germane to the episode, for Lisa, Valentine’s Day means being the only person in her entire class to give Ralph a Valentine after noticing him looking crestfallen and alone at his desk.}}
Hypocrisy lies at heart of Manning prosecution, passage=WikiLeaks did not cause these uprisings but it certainly informed them. The dispatches revealed details of corruption and kleptocracy that many Tunisians suspected, but could not prove , and would cite as they took to the streets. They also exposed the blatant discrepancy between the west's professed values and actual foreign policies.}}
Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool, passage=He met Luis Suarez's cross at the far post, only for Chelsea keeper Petr Cech to show brilliant reflexes to deflect his header on to the bar. Carroll turned away to lead Liverpool's insistent protests that the ball had crossed the line but referee Phil Dowd and assistant referee Andrew Garratt waved play on, with even a succession of replays proving inconclusive.}}
- to prove a will
- Where she, captived long, great woes did prove .
- to prove a page