Corroborate

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /kəˈɹɒbəɹeɪ̯t/

Definitions

1. To lend weight to a claim by supplying supporting evidence while also verifying the accuracy of a statement through additional information
2. To strengthen a statement or theory by providing additional proof or information
3. To verify the truth of a claim by presenting facts or details from other sources

Etymology: The verb "corroborate" began life as a strengthening word. Its Latin root, "rōbur," meant "strength" or "oak," and the verb "rōborō" meant "to strengthen." Add the prefix "con-," meaning "together," and you get "corrōborō," which meant to support or make something firm, something you could lean on. English borrowed it in the 1530s, and for a while the adjective form "corroborate" was a regular way of describing something that had been strengthened or confirmed. The verb sense of giving evidence in support of a claim came later, and the original idea of physical strengthening never fully disappeared. Latin's "rōbur" also gives English "robust," so the two words are cousins, both drawn from the same notion of hardness and solidity. A claim that is corroborated has been reinforced in the way a beam is reinforced, with another piece of support placed beside it.

Synonyms: confirm, verify, validate, support, substantiated

Antonyms: disprove, refute, contradict, deny, invalidate