Quote:
Originally Posted by WT Sharpe
I've often wondered how 'love' and 'prove' sounded a few centuries ago. I've noticed that many of the older poets used these words as if they rhymed.
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That word much beloved of TV ads "proven", is pronounced with an 'oh'. It is actually an archaic Scottish legal term still in use in the courts. A long time ago, in TV land, a commercial for something like toothpaste or laundry powder used the word 'proven' instead of 'proved' (scientifically proved to be ....), and it spread across the small screen like a rash.
So, maybe 'love' and 'prove' were originally pronounced 'lohve' and 'prohve'?