> because exceptions disprove the rule. You may be aware (since you turned it around), but the phrase "the exception proves the rule" is meant to provoke thoug

> because exceptions disprove the rule. You may be aware (since you turned it around), but the phrase "the exception proves the rule" is meant to provoke thought about the rule in question, not announce it as broken. This is so because the meaning of "prove" in that phrase is "test", as noted in https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prove https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prove at 2.a.