the proof is in the pudding

English

Etymology

This phrase is a shortened form of the proof of the pudding is in the eating (14th century). The shorter version, which misses the point of the original meaning, is found in an 1867 issue of the British Farmer's Magazine,^[1] came into common use in the United States in the 1950s, and is becoming increasingly common.^[2][3]

Proverb

the proof is in the pudding

1. (sometimes proscribed) Alternative form of the proof of the pudding is in the eating

References

1. “The Manchester and Liverpool Agricultural Society: Meeting at Manchester”, in Farmer's Magazine‎, London, 1867, page 294:

   Following the example of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, instead of one of the more wide-awake maxims of our great-grandfathers, which teaches us that when we cannot get one thing to make the best use of the other, the meeting appointed to be held at Stourport last year was abandoned; although, as the proof is in the pudding, as seen at this and other gatherings, there was ample material even without cattle, to make a capital show.

2. Michael Quinion (March 13, 2004) “Proof of the pudding”, in World Wide Words.
3. The American Heritage Dictionary, According to Ask Yahoo, "the proof is in the pudding" come from?", Tue 03 Sep 2002.

Further reading

• “Proof is in the pudding”, in BBC Learning English‎, BBC, 2014 August 19
• “What Does 'The Proof Is in the Pudding' Mean?”, in World History‎, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2020