Word study
Proven
1 Hebrew and 3 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with “proven”. English often uses one word where Hebrew or Greek has several, each with its own shade of meaning. Under each word are verses where it is translated this way; choose the word itself for its full study: every verse, how else it is translated, the forms it takes and what the dictionaries say.
At a glance
How often each original word is translated “proven” or one of its forms.
Compare the Greek words side by side
Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)
- שֶׁקֶר sheqerdeception, disappointment, falsehoodtranslated this way 1 time of its 104 uses · Strong’s H8267Noun · Translated: lies 18, lying 16, false 12, falsely 10Full study and all 100 verses →
Deuteronomy 19:18 The judges shall investigate thoroughly, and if the witness is proven to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother,
Greek words (New Testament)
- δοκιμάζω dokimázōI put to the test, prove, examinetranslated this way 1 time of its 22 uses · Strong’s G1381Verb · Translated: test 4, interpret 2Full study and all 20 verses →
2 Corinthians 8:22 And we are sending along with them our brother who has proven his earnestness to us many times and in many ways, and now even more so by his great confidence in you.
- δοκιμή dokimḗa trial, proof; tried, approved charactertranslated this way 1 time of its 8 uses · Strong’s G1382Noun · Translated: character 2, proof 2, stand the test 1, ordeal 1Full study and all 7 verses →
Philippians 2:22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, that as a child with his father he has served with me to advance the gospel.
- δοκίμιον dokímiona test, trial, what is genuinetranslated this way 1 time of its 2 uses · Strong’s G1383Noun · Translated: testing 1, proven character 1Full study and all 2 verses →
1 Peter 1:7 so that the proven character of your faith — more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
How to study a word well
- Start from the verse, not the dictionary. Find which Hebrew or Greek word stands in the verse you are studying. One English word often translates several different original words.
- Read every place the word is used. A word means what its writers used it to mean. The list of verses and the count by book show its range, and who uses it most.
- Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
- Notice the form. A command is not a statement, and a passive verb is something done to the subject. The form in your verse is part of the meaning.
- See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
- Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
- Come back to the verse. Context decides. A word does not carry every one of its meanings into every verse, and where a word came from does not settle what it means in a sentence written centuries later.
Scripture text and translation counts: Berean Standard Bible. Full entry: Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906, public domain), in the digital edition Brown-Driver-Briggs Enhanced by unfoldingWord (Joel Ruark, J. de Joode), based on data by Eliran Wong and Stephen Ku; its additions are used under CC BY 4.0. Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project, CC BY 4.0. Hebrew-to-English verse numbering: original work of the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible available at https://github.com/openscriptures/morphhb, CC BY 4.0. We reformatted the data, linked the references to this site’s Bible text and left out words in other scripts that the source holds only as images. These are historical reference works; an entry gives its authors’ view, and a word’s meaning in any verse depends on how it is used there.