Evidence refers to facts, signs, or objects that help to prove whether something is true or false.
What Does Evidence Mean?
Evidence comes from Latin evidentia, meaning clarity or distinctness, related to videre — to see. The idea is that evidence is something you can "clearly see" or point to in order to support a conclusion. It entered English via Old French in the 14th century and has been central to legal, scientific, and everyday language ever since.
In everyday use, evidence is information — facts, data, physical objects, or observations — that makes a claim more or less believable. In law, evidence is anything presented in court to prove guilt or innocence. In science, evidence is the data gathered through experiments or observation. In academic writing, students are regularly asked to "support their argument with evidence".
A critical grammar point: evidence is an uncountable noun. You cannot say an evidence or evidences. Instead, use a piece of evidence, some evidence, or strong evidence. This is one of the most frequent mistakes made by B1 learners.
Example Sentences
| Sentence | Usage note |
|---|---|
| The police found evidence linking the suspect to the scene of the crime. | legal / forensic context |
| There is no scientific evidence that the supplement improves memory. | scientific / academic context |
| Her exam results are evidence of how hard she has been studying. | evidence of + noun phrase |
| The doctor asked for more evidence before making a diagnosis. | medical / professional context |
| He presented compelling evidence to support his argument in the debate. | academic writing / argument |
| The muddy footprints were the only piece of evidence we had. | a piece of evidence (countable phrase) |
| The minister denied any wrongdoing, despite the growing body of evidence against him. | body of evidence — formal/journalistic |
| Based on the available evidence, the committee decided to halt the project. | based on evidence — formal register |
Word Forms
Common Collocations
| Collocation | Example phrase |
|---|---|
| strong evidence | There is strong evidence that exercise reduces stress. |
| gather evidence | Investigators spent weeks gathering evidence at the site. |
| present evidence | Both sides had the opportunity to present evidence in court. |
| scientific evidence | The policy should be based on scientific evidence, not opinion. |
| anecdotal evidence | Anecdotal evidence suggests the treatment works, but trials are needed. |
| evidence suggests | The evidence suggests that early intervention is most effective. |
| lack of evidence | The case was dropped due to a lack of evidence. |
| body of evidence | A growing body of evidence links sleep deprivation to poor health. |
Common Mistakes
Watch Out For
The police found an evidence at the scene.
The police found a piece of evidence at the scene. (Evidence is uncountable — use "a piece of evidence" or "some evidence".)
We have many evidences to support this theory.
We have a great deal of evidence to support this theory. (Never use "evidences" as a plural — it is not standard English.)
She made evidence that the report was wrong.
She provided evidence that the report was wrong. (Use "provide", "present", "gather", or "find" — not "make" evidence.)