to prove otherwise
15
5.2
- phrasal verb
:
demostrar lo contrario
- I think we all suspect what Alex's ceiling is, and until he proves otherwise, that's what it is.
I get Blake Slate for them until proven otherwise.
- I get Blake Slate for them until proven otherwise.
- And last time I checked, you know, it's, it's not guilty until proven otherwise.
- For years, Hunter Biden denied that he was the father of Navy Joan Roberts until Adna test proved otherwise.
- And then as to if it's a crime scene or not, always just I don't want to pretend, always assume that it's a crime scene until proven otherwise.
- And then as to if it's a crime scene or not always just, I don't want to say pretend, always assume that it's a crime scene until proven otherwise.
- Yet we have unlimited amounts of hundreds of millions of people who prove otherwise.
- Well, I have, you know, evidence to prove otherwise that we have no idea, you know, when the last breath will be.
Examples
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Of course, further examination could prove otherwise.
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I will always trust that my child is being honest until the evidence proves otherwise.
Blog text (20) -
Yes, and it's our job to prove otherwise.
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What if we could prove otherwise?
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And if I can prove otherwise?
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Hey, you prove otherwise, you get your money back.
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Until proved otherwise, everyone is suspect.
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I'm afraid the second study proves otherwise.
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Unless there's evidence to prove otherwise, I don't understand what the problem is.
Blog text (27) -
The evidence presented in court will help us prove otherwise if the witness's claim is incorrect.
Synonyms
174
3.7
To say that something is not true or the opposite of what someone says
88
6.2
To show that an idea or statement is false using evidence
66
4.5
To show that an idea or claim is not true
21
7.0
To say or show that a claim is wrong
1
7.4
To show by facts that an idea or belief is not true
1
8.3
To say that a statement is not true
How Contradictory
66
4.5
15
5.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'prove' (establish by evidence) combined with 'otherwise' (in a different or opposite way) yields 'show that a different/opposite result is true.' The particle 'otherwise' clearly signals an alternative to the prior claim and this pattern is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Prove otherwise paints a simple picture: the word prove means 'to show' and otherwise means 'in a different way', so when facts prove otherwise they show that an earlier idea is actually different or the opposite. That's why it means 'to show the opposite'.