From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishevidenceev‧i‧dence1 /ˈevɪdəns/ ●●● S2 W1 AWL noun 1 [uncountable]PROVE facts or signs that show clearly that something exists or is trueevidence of At present we have no evidence of life on other planets.evidence for There is no evidence for these claims.evidence that Do you have evidence that this treatment works?► see thesaurus at sign2 [uncountable]SCT information that is given in a court of law in order to prove that someone is guilty or not guilty Murrow’s evidence was enough to convict Hayes of murder. He refused to give evidence at the trial.evidence against There was very little evidence against the two men.in evidence The documents may be used in evidence at the trial.3 → be in evidence → king's evidence, Queen's evidence, State's evidenceGRAMMAR: Countable or uncountable?• Evidence is an uncountable noun and is not used in the plural. You say: The judge listened to all the evidence. ✗Don’t say: The judge listened to all the evidences.• Evidence is always followed by a singular verb: The evidence is very clear.• When talking about one fact or sign, you say a piece of evidence: The police found a vital piece of evidence.COLLOCATIONS – Meanings 1 & 2verbshave evidenceDo the police have any evidence against him?find evidence (also obtain evidence formal)The authorities failed to obtain enough evidence to convict him.gather/collect evidencePolice experts are still collecting evidence at the scene of the crime.look for/search for evidenceThe investigation will look for evidence of financial mismanagement.hide evidenceThe killer may have tried to burn the bodies in an attempt to hide the evidence.plant evidence (=deliberately put evidence somewhere to make someone look guilty)He claims the evidence was planted there by the police.produce evidence (=find evidence and prepare it for a court case)The case was adjourned to allow the police time to produce further evidence.give evidence (=tell a court about what you have seen or know to be true)Ms White has agreed to give evidence at their trial.consider/examine/study the evidenceHaving considered all the evidence, the court found him not guilty.adjectivesgood/clear/strong evidence There is clear evidence that smoking causes heart disease.hard evidence (=very clear evidence which proves that something is true)They have no hard evidence to support their claim. fresh evidence (=new evidence)The police say they may have found fresh evidence which proves Tilly was at the scene of the crime.medical/scientific evidenceThere isn’t any medical evidence to support the claim.reliable/credible (=which people can trust or believe)Do you think their evidence is reliable?flimsy (=not good enough to make you believe something)Their conclusions are drawn from some very flimsy evidence.convincing/compelling (=making you feel sure that something is true)The data provides compelling evidence that the climate is changing.overwhelming (=when there is so much evidence that you are sure that something is true)The evidence against him was overwhelming.conclusive/incontrovertible/irrefutable evidence (=very strong evidence which cannot be disproved)We need irrefutable evidence before making an arrest.The government claims it has conclusive evidence of the country’s nuclear weapons programme.conflicting evidence (=pieces of evidence that support different conclusions)With so much conflicting evidence, it’s almost impossible to make a decision.incriminating evidence (=making someone seem guilty of a crime)The robbers were careful not to leave any incriminating evidence behind.damning evidence (=proving that someone has done something wrong)Her testimony proved to be the most damning evidence against him.circumstantial evidence (=evidence which makes something seem likely, but does not prove it)His barrister claims the case against him is based on circumstantial evidence.anecdotal evidence (=based on what people believe, rather than on facts)Anecdotal evidence suggests that gang-related violence is on the increase.empirical evidence (=based on scientific testing or practical experience)Where is the empirical evidence to back up these claims?admissible evidence (=acceptable in a court of law)Her lawyer advised that the tape would not be admissible evidence in court.phrasesa piece of evidenceThe study produced one interesting piece of evidence. not a scrap/shred of evidence (=no evidence at all)There is not one scrap of evidence against our client.COMMON ERRORS ► Don’t say ‘true evidence’. Say reliable evidence.
Examples from the Corpus
evidence• evidence of life on other planets• Without any evidence we cannot prove that she was involved in murder.• The police did not have enough evidence to charge anybody with the murder.• Prosecutors believe they have enough evidence to convict Smith.• Final evidence that rhynchosaurs were herbivorous is that they occurred in large numbers; in general we expect the herbivores to outnumber carnivores.• One need not go to Budhist sociology to find evidence of self benefits.• People have been looking for evidence of life on other planets for years.• His former girlfriend was called to give evidence.• Husbands and wives cannot be forced to give evidence against each other.• And there appears to be little evidence that that will occur soon.• The defense presented some new evidence from the victim's next-door neighbor.• We can find no evidence that he ever worked for the company.• The most important piece of evidence, the murder weapon, has not been found.• There is not a shred of evidence to support such a theory.• The government's case was based on evidence gathered over a two-year investigation.• There is no scientific evidence to support this theory.• There is some evidence that a small amount of alcohol is good for you.• There is strong evidence to suggest that the Great Barrier Reef will have disappeared in 20 years time.• After examining such evidence, the Oregon court agreed with the teacher that the contract was not divisible into two parts.• In this case we must reconstitute ourselves into a court of appeal and go through all the evidence afresh.• He must draw deductions about what he thinks took place from the evidence that is presented to him.• The evidence proves clearly and beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty.• I have suggested elsewhere that their presentation of their evidence benefits from closer examination.• There was no visible evidence that humans had ever lived in this valley.evidence that• The presence of the out-of-phase conduction is therefore additional evidence that significant non-electrolyte-mediated conduction is occurring.• The agents are looking for evidence that puts Kaczynski at each site where a bomb was mailed or placed, officials said.• The problems are responsive to nutrition intervention, or there is evidence that nutrition intervention will contribute to the solution. 4.• As yet, however, there is little evidence that cytokine secreting tumour infiltrating lymphocytes perform any more effectively than the parent cells.• There is no evidence that the raised incidence in Seascale extends to the two county districts nearest to Sellafield or to Cumbria generally.• Again, however, there's no evidence that voters wanted city government dismantled.• There was no evidence that either driver had been drinking.• Despite the evidence that men can raise their children, most women still do not trust them.• It agreed a new report which recorded widespread evidence that the world's temperature was increasing.evidenceevidence2 verb [transitive] formalSHOW/BE A SIGN OF to show that something exists or is trueas (is) evidenced by The volcano is still active, as evidenced by the recent eruption.Grammar Evidence is usually passive.Examples from the Corpus
evidence• Iron deficiency anemia, as evidenced by a high prevalence of low hemoglobin levels, was a widespread problem.• A belief in unseen forces, perhaps, which in Auerbach's paintings are evidenced by angular vectors in the sky.• This was evidenced by the continuation of her long-established teaching methods and forms of classroom organisation between sessions with the advisory teacher.• The split between rich and poor teams has grown wider, evidenced by the few clubs going after high-priced free agents.• Some of them have been visiting inappropriate Web sites, as was evidenced by the History folder.• However, seat belts also involve a degree of inconvenience, as evidenced by the unwillingness of many people to use them.• The Empire and the superiority it evidenced, was just the way things were, entirely natural.From Longman Business Dictionaryevidenceev‧i‧dence /ˈevɪdəns/ noun [uncountable] LAWinformation or facts given in a court of law to prove that someone is guiltyHe refused to give evidence at the trial. 