Accusing Sotomayor of “butchering the English language,” Limbaugh mixes up providence and provenance Written by Media Matters Staff Published 07/16/09 1:59 PM EDT From the July 16 edition of Premiere Radio Networks' The Rush Limbaugh Show: Video file According to Merriam-Webster.com, provenance is defined as “origin, source” or “the history of ownership of a valued object or work of art or literature.”