Library / English Dictionary

DEMONSTRATE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Establish the validity of something, as by an example, explanation or experiment

Example:

The mathematician showed the validity of the conjecture

Synonyms:

demonstrate; establish; prove; shew; show

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Hypernyms (to "demonstrate" is one way to...):

affirm; confirm; corroborate; substantiate; support; sustain (establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "demonstrate"):

prove oneself (show one's ability or courage)

prove (prove formally; demonstrate by a mathematical, formal proof)

contradict; negate (prove negative; show to be false)

stultify (prove to be of unsound mind or demonstrate someone's incompetence)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Derivation:

demonstrative (serving to demonstrate)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Provide evidence for; stand as proof of; show by one's behavior, attitude, or external attributes

Example:

This decision demonstrates his sense of fairness

Synonyms:

attest; certify; demonstrate; evidence; manifest

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "demonstrate" is one way to...):

bear witness; evidence; prove; show; testify (provide evidence for)

Verb group:

attest (establish or verify the usage of)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "demonstrate"):

authenticate (establish the authenticity of something)

reflect (give evidence of the quality of)

reflect (give evidence of a certain behavior)

notarise; notarize (authenticate as a notary)

condemn (demonstrate the guilt of (someone))

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Sentence example:

They demonstrate that there was a traffic accident

Derivation:

demonstrative (serving to demonstrate)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Give an exhibition of to an interested audience

Example:

We will demo the new software in Washington

Synonyms:

demo; demonstrate; exhibit; present; show

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "demonstrate" is one way to...):

show (make visible or noticeable)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "demonstrate"):

bring home (make understandable and clear)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody something
Somebody ----s something to somebody
Somebody ----s somebody with something

Derivation:

demonstration (a show or display; the act of presenting something to sight or view)

demonstration (a visual presentation showing how something works)

demonstrator (a teacher or teacher's assistant who demonstrates the principles that are being taught)

Sense 4

Meaning:

March in protest; take part in a demonstration

Example:

Thousands demonstrated against globalization during the meeting of the most powerful economic nations in Seattle

Synonyms:

demonstrate; march

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "demonstrate" is one way to...):

dissent; protest; resist (express opposition through action or words)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "demonstrate"):

picket (serve as pickets or post pickets)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

demonstration (a public display of group feelings (usually of a political nature))

demonstrator (someone who participates in a public display of group feeling)

Credits

 Context examples: 

This study demonstrates that marine plastics are far more abundant than anyone realized and can be found potentially everywhere in the ocean.

(Microplastics million times more abundant in the ocean than previously thought, National Science Foundation)

The research also demonstrated that co-exposure to CBs and alcohol increased the likelihood of birth defects involving the face and brain.

(Using both marijuana and alcohol during early pregnancy may increase the likelihood of disrupting fetal development, National Institutes of Health)

But this study is the first to demonstrate that the activity of TET1 underpins regeneration in adult mouse liver tissue.

(Regeneration mechanism discovered in mice could provide target for drugs to combat chronic liver disease, University of Cambridge)

In a study using endothelial cells it was demonstrated that S1P induces activation of alpha-v and B3 integrins via RhoA.

(Phospholipid Signaling Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

Unlike other alkylating agents, benzaldehyde dimethane sulfonate has demonstrated antitumor activity in renal cell carcinoma.

(Benzaldehyde Dimethane Sulfonate, NCI Thesaurus)

This agent is cytotoxic against leukemia cell lines and has demonstrated some activity against leukemia cells in vivo.

(Beta-Thioguanine Deoxyriboside, NCI Thesaurus)

Microarray gene expression profiling studies have demonstrated the expression of ZAP-70 gene (Syk family tyrosine kinase) in this subset of CLL/CLL.

(Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia/Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma with Unmutated Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain Variable-Region Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

It has been demonstrated that PKA-RIIa dissociates and redistributes from centrosomes at mitosis.

(Centrosome Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

Preclinical studies have demonstrated that this agent is effective in inhibiting the growth of tumor cells bearing a B-RAF mutation, which has been found to be associated with many tumor types.

(Cobimetinib, NCI Thesaurus)

More recently it has been demonstrated that Pelp1 mediates the interaction of ER and Src leading to the activation of the Mitogen Activated Protein Kinases Erk1 and Erk2.

(Pelp1 Estrogen Receptor Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)