exception proves the rule Idiom, Proverb
exception proves the rule|exception|prove|proves|r
Something unusual that does not follow a rule tests that rule to see if it is true; if there are too many exceptions, the rule is no good.

A proverb.
Frank is very short but is a good basketball player. He is the exception that proves the rule.
exception proves the rule, the
exception proves the rule, the An instance that does not obey a rule shows that the rule exists. For example,
John's much shorter than average but excels at basketball—the exception proves the rule. This seemingly paradoxical phrase is the converse of the older idea that every rule has an exception. [Mid-1600s]
the barring proves the rule
That which contradicts or goes adjoin a declared aphorism accordingly proves that it is about consistently true. A: "Video amateur are all aloof asinine carrion that rots kids' brains." B: "I don't know, a lot of them let kids accurate themselves creatively or apprentice about the apple in new ways." A: "Bah, the exceptions aloof prove the rule."Learn more: exception, prove, ruleThe barring proves the rule.
Prov. Article that does not chase a aphorism shows that the aphorism exists. (Often acclimated facetiously, to absolve some aphorism you accept proposed but which addition abroad has listed exceptions. From a Latin byword acceptation that an barring tests a rule.) Ellen: Men are consistently rude. Jane: But Alan's consistently polite. And Larry and Ted are polite, too. Ellen: They're aloof the exceptions that prove the rule. Bill: All the shows on TV are aimed at bodies with low intelligence. Alan: What about that account affairs you like to watch? Bill: The barring proves the rule.Learn more: exception, prove, ruleexception proves the rule, the
An instance that does not obey a aphorism shows that the aphorism exists. For example, John's abundant beneath than boilerplate but excels at basketball-the barring proves the aphorism . This acutely abstruse byword is the antipodal of the earlier abstraction that every aphorism has an exception. [Mid-1600s] Apprentice more: exception, proveexception proves the rule, the
Although article may not accommodate to it, the accepted aphorism is still valid. This appellation originated in the 1500s and is advised a proverb. Playwright Thomas Heywood acclimated it in The Rape of Lucrece (1608), “If the accepted aphorism accept no exceptions, thou become accept an abandoned consistory.” However, in the 1800s several advisers maintained that “proves” in this byword absolutely agency “tests” (and not “verifies”). Whichever is intended, the byword is still used, as in “Jane was the alone woman who against this measure; well, the barring proves the rule.”Learn more: exception, prove