corroborate

Compared meaning: to prove or state that something is true (verb).

比较义项：证实、确认某事是真实的（动词）。

• confirm

  General, everyday word for establishing that something is true or as expected; used for facts, plans, bookings, and suspicions alike, often with a that-clause.

  这是一个通用的日常词，表示证实或确定某事是真实的或与预期相符，可用于事实、计划、预订和猜测等，常接that从句。

  Please confirm your appointment by replying to this email.

  请回复此邮件以确认您的预约。

• affirm

  Formal; to state something positively and confidently as true, typically one's own belief, identity, or statement, rather than backing up someone else's account with evidence.

  较为正式；表示明确、自信地陈述某事为真，通常是陈述自己的信念、身份或说法，而不是用证据支持他人的说法。

  The witness stood up to affirm that her statement was true.

  证人站起来确认她的陈述是真实的。

• corroborate 本词

  Formal or legal; to add independent evidence or testimony that supports someone else's existing claim or story, usually taking a noun object like 'story' or 'alibi', not a that-clause.

  较为正式（常用于法律语境）；表示提供独立的证据或证词来支持他人已有的说法或陈述，通常接名词宾语（如story、alibi），而不是that从句。

  Witnesses were able to corroborate her story about the accident.

  目击者能够证实她对事故的描述。

Confirm, affirm, and corroborate all mean to show something is true, but usage differs. Confirm is the common, neutral word. Affirm is formal, meaning to state one's belief firmly. Corroborate is formal too, meaning to support someone else's claim with independent evidence, often in law.

这三个词都表示证实、确认某事为真，但语气和搭配不同：confirm最常用、最中性，日常和正式场合都可用；affirm更正式，强调坚定地陈述（通常是自己的）信念或说法；corroborate也很正式，强调用独立证据或证词支持他人已有的说法，常见于法律和调查语境。这里不比较affirm表示「宣誓效忠」或用于法律宣誓替代的义项。