substantiate

1 to gain full recognition or acceptance of substantiated his claim to local mountaineering fame with a photo of himself on the summit of Mount McKinley Synonyms demonstrate, prove, show, establishRelated Words attest, authenticate, bear out, document, evidence, support, sustain, uphold; confirm, corroborate, justify, validate, verifyNear Antonyms confute, discredit, invalidate, rebut, refuteAntonyms disprove

2 to give evidence or testimony to the truth or factualness of Mr. MacGregor couldn't substantiate that it was Peter, and not some other rabbit, in the cabbage patch Synonyms argue, attest, authenticate, bear out, certify, corroborate, confirm, support, validate, verify, vindicateRelated Words avouch, back (up), testify (to), vouch (for), witness; guarantee, warrant; affirm, assert, aver, avow, declare, profess; demonstrate, document, establish, prove, reinforce (also reenforce)Near Antonyms contradict, gainsay; deny, disavow, disclaim; challenge, contest, dispute, questionAntonyms disprove, rebut, refute

3 to represent in visible form the artist's intense feelings are substantiated by his paintings' bold colors and broad brush strokes Synonyms body, epitomize, express, externalize, incarnate, incorporate, instantiate, manifest, materialize, personalize, personify, embodyRelated Words actualize, concretize, realize; exemplify, illustrate, image, objectify, symbolize, typifyAntonyms disembody

4 to show the existence or truth of by evidence substantiate the need for a tuition increase with some concrete figures Synonyms demonstrate, document, establish, prove, validateRelated Words back (up), buttress, circumstantiate, corroborate; evidence, evince, record, support, uphold, witness; adduce, attest, authenticate, certify, identify; confirm, sustain, verify, vouch; clinch, nail, settle; confess, depose, testifyNear Antonyms challenge, dispute, object; allege, assume, conjecture, guess, presume, surmise, suspectAntonyms disprove, rebut, refute

5 to provide evidence or information for (as a claim or idea) Darwin spent the rest of his life gathering evidence to substantiate his theory of the origin of species Synonyms back, bolster, buttress, corroborate, reinforce (also reenforce), shore (up), supportRelated Words confirm, establish, prove, verify; affirm, avouch, validateNear Antonyms undercut, undermine, weaken