Standard Lemma guide

probative

adj · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • General-American: /ˈproʊ.bə.tɪv/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: P R OW0 B EY1 T IH0 V Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Tending to prove a particular proposition or to persuade someone of the truth of an allegation.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: formal

Topics: law

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adjective satellite

Meaning 2

tending to prove a particular proposition or to persuade you of the truth of an allegation

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • evidence should only be excluded if its probative value was outweighed by its prejudicial effect

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: probatory

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle English probatiffe, from Old French probatif, from Latin probātīvus (“belonging to proof”), from Latin probare (“show, prove, demonstrate”) (See prove). Originally in terme probatiffe (“a period of time assigned for the proving of an allegation”). First attested in the mid-15th century.

Across languages

Translations

10 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: ապացուցողական (apacʻucʻoġakan) — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Bulgarian: доказателствен (dokazatelstven) — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Chinese Mandarin: 有證明力的 /有证明力的 (yǒu zhèngmínglì de) — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Finnish: todistusvoimainen — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • German: beweiskräftig — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Greek: αποδεικτικός (apodeiktikós) — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Hungarian: bizonyító erejű — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Russian: доказа́тельный (dokazátelʹnyj) — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Swedish: beviskraftig — tending to prove a particular proposition
  • Ukrainian: доказо́вий (dokazóvyj) — tending to prove a particular proposition