prise
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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to force open by levering
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to extract or obtain with difficulty
they had to prise the news out of him
noun
Etymology
Origin of prise
C17: from Old French prise a taking, from prendre to take, from Latin prehendere; see prize 1
Explanation
To prise is to extract or move something using force, the way you'd prise your stolen diary out of your snooping sibling's hands. The verb prise is good for when you use an effortful physical force. If you're struggling to open an old window that's painted shut, you may need a screwdriver to prise it open. Don't mistake prise for its homonym prize, which as a verb means "to cherish or appreciate." The two words do share a root, the Latin prendere, "to grasp, seize, or catch."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In at number one, though, is a force who made the £80m Real Madrid coughed up to prise him from Manchester United in 2009 look like pennies.
From BBC ● Apr. 21, 2026
Jalibert landed his fourth conversion to bring his team to within a point but could not then prise another gap in the Pau defence.
From Barron's ● Nov. 21, 2025
However, Schmidt's tenure ended with two losses and he was unable to prise the Bledisloe from the All Blacks.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2025
On Monday, McCullum would have had to march on to the field to prise the ball from Stokes' hand.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2025
Ron was buried deepest: Harry and Hermione climbed, as quietly as they could, over all the wreckage to where he lay, trying to prise a heavy chest of drawers off his legs.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Robinson had already prised out Azan Awais and Abdullah Shafique by the time Archer removed Pakistan captain Babar Azam with an 89mph bouncer.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
Moreover, Papic believes the Strait of Hormuz will be prised open shortly, not just because of America’s blitzkrieg but by a coordinated response from the rest of the world.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 16, 2026
Although it was recovered, the crown was damaged, and Laurence des Cars told the senators that it had probably been crushed as the thieves prised it from its display case.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2025
When the bin was prised open, officers found bags of washing powder stacked on top of concrete.
From BBC ● May 10, 2023
She looked at photographs of these men and women and felt the dull ache of loss, as though they had prised open her hand and taken something of hers.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
While prising Claude Makelele from Real Madrid's Galacticos was a huge statement - likewise Hernan Crespo from Inter Milan - Petr Cech was the wall on which back-to-back titles were built.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
Liverpool are interested in the 25-year-old Sweden forward but know they would have to break the British transfer record to even stand a chance of prising him from the Magpies.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2025
One black-clad officer crouched near the head of the grave, delicately prising a green-tinted hand free from the dirt, while a colleague stood by, holding a clipboard, making careful notes.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2022
Kevin De Bruyne is expected to be Manchester City’s final acquisition of the summer with the manager, Manuel Pellegrini, increasingly confident of prising the 24-year-old from Wolfsburg.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 5, 2015
Ron said, prising a fish bone out from between his teeth.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
