WordGarden.ioevidential
C2Pronunciation
UK
- /ˌɛvɪdˈɛnʃəl/
US
Meanings
Adjective
relating to or serving as evidence
relating to evidence used in legal proceedings
Noun
a grammatical form that marks the source of information
Beyond the definition
If a detective says a clue is "evidential," it means the clue serves as evidence. It gives real support to an idea about what happened, instead of being just a guess or a feeling.
It is not limited to crime stories. A scientist may present "evidential data" to support a theory, and a historian may study "evidential documents" to better understand the past. In each case, the idea is the same: something is being used because it helps show that a claim has real support.
The word "evidential" describes something that relates to evidence or serves as evidence. It refers to facts, signs, documents, observations, or data that help support or test a claim. The word points away from mere opinion or guesswork and toward something that can be examined and weighed.
You will often meet "evidential" in situations where people care strongly about support and proof, such as legal cases, scientific research, and historical study. A lawyer may point to "evidential material" in court, a researcher may gather "evidential data" for a study, and a historian may examine "evidential records" from the past. In all of these cases, the word highlights the link to evidence.
It is also useful to separate what is simply interesting from what is truly evidential. Something may catch attention without actually giving much support to a conclusion. For example, footprints near a window may be evidential because they help show that someone was there, even if they do not settle the whole question by themselves.
In the end, "evidential" emphasizes that a statement or conclusion rests on supporting material rather than belief alone. It suggests that the claim can be checked against evidence. When something is described as "evidential," the focus is on how it helps support, test, or justify what someone is saying.
Examples
- 1
Legal claim
There is no evidential basis for the claim that the drug is unsafe.
- 2
Court evidence
The judge decided that the photo had little evidential value.
- 3
Linguistics
In some languages, verbs include evidential markers that show how the speaker got the information.
- Domainin linguistics, an evidential marker
a form that shows whether you saw, heard, or inferred something
See also
Similar
Shades of meaning
- corroborative
- documentary
Contrast
Used with (collocations)
- evidential value
- evidential basis
- evidential support
Word family
- evidence
- evidentially
Explore
- proof
- burden of proof
Forms and spellings
1 form open this card.
Main spelling
- evidentialadjective