prompt
Americanadjective
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done, performed, delivered, etc., at once or without delay.
I emailed them asking about my package and they gave a prompt reply.
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ready in action; quick to act as occasion demands.
They were trained to be prompt and competent for any emergency.
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quick or alert.
You're too prompt to take offense.
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She's never prompt in arriving for work, yet she's always the first to leave at the end of the day.
verb (used with object)
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prompts,
present (3rd person singular)
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prompted,
past participle, past
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prompting
present participle
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to move or induce to action.
What prompted you to say that?
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to occasion or incite; inspire.
What prompted his resignation?
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to assist (a person speaking) by suggesting something to be said.
It's obvious that this witness has been prompted into giving false testimony.
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Theater. to supply (an actor, singer, etc.) from offstage with a missed cue or forgotten line.
I focused on prompting our Cyrano, who had become strangely disoriented.
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Computers. (of a computer system) to send a message or symbol to (a user) requesting information or instructions, usually by displaying the message or symbol on a screen.
Once the home page has loaded, the computer will prompt you to log in to your account.
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Computers, Digital Technology. to request particular output from (a machine learning algorithm) by means of instructions, questions, examples, context, or other input.
verb (used without object)
-
prompts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
prompted,
past participle, past
-
prompting
present participle
noun
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prompts
plural
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the act of prompting.
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something serving to suggest or remind.
They send an email once a month, which is just the prompt I need to pay my bill on time.
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Commerce.
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a limit of time given for payment for merchandise purchased, the limit being stated on a note of reminder prompt note.
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the contract setting the time limit.
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Computers. a message or symbol from a computer system to a user, generally appearing on a display screen, requesting more information or indicating that the system is ready for user instructions.
When the prompt appears, provide your access code.
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Computers, Digital Technology. a sequence of inputs, often containing instructions, questions, examples, or context, used to request particular output from a machine learning algorithm.
idioms
adjective
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performed or executed without delay
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quick or ready to act or respond
adverb
verb
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(tr) to urge (someone to do something)
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to remind (an actor, singer, etc) of lines forgotten during a performance
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(tr) to refresh the memory of
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(tr) to give rise to by suggestion
his affairs will prompt discussion
noun
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commerce
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the time limit allowed for payment of the debt incurred by purchasing goods or services on credit
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the contract specifying this time limit
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Also called: prompt note. a memorandum sent to a purchaser to remind him of the time limit and the sum due
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the act of prompting
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anything that serves to remind
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an aid to the operator of a computer in the form of a question or statement that appears on the screen showing that the equipment is ready to proceed and indicating the options available
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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promptsimple
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promptssimple
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have promptedperfect
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has promptedperfect
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am promptingprogressive
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are promptingprogressive
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is promptingprogressive
-
have been promptingperfect progressive
-
has been promptingperfect progressive
Past
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promptedsimple
-
had promptedperfect
-
was promptingprogressive
-
were promptingprogressive
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had been promptingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of prompt
First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English prompte “ready, eager” (adjective), prompten (verb), both ultimately from Latin promptus “manifest, at hand, ready, quick, prepared,” adjective use of past participle of prōmere “to bring forth, deliver, set forth,” from prō- pro- 1 + (e)mere “to buy, obtain, take”
Explanation
If you're prompt, you're on time. Go ahead and be prompt to class. Also, to prompt is to inspire or make happen. Getting in trouble for being late should prompt you to get a better alarm clock. The adjective prompt can mean "as scheduled," or simply "quick." When you prompt someone, you motivate them in some way: you might offer a reminder, assistance, or even inspiration to do something. For example, honking your car horn prompts your friend to get moving, and speaking up in defense of your classmate might prompt a bully to change his ways. If a director prompts an actor who's forgotten his lines, she reminds him what comes next.
Vocabulary lists containing prompt
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Essential English Vocabulary, List 1
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 20–25
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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:
“Rabies is a fatal viral disease that is preventable with prompt medical care following potential exposure,” the National Park Service said in its statement announcing the infection.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
Clifford Robert, outside counsel representing Slater, told The Times that the firm “is working with the county and the claims administrator to ensure the prompt payment of their clients’ claims.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
The prospect of higher energy prices is causing worries about inflationary pressures that could prompt the Fed to hike rates, it adds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
A final section initiated by an AI prompt may or may not have been composed by a computer, but it reads like run-on gibberish either way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
The document also commended the local sheriff for his prompt and successful action to protect property and persons in the vicinity and for his judgment in selecting his deputies.
From "Fannie Never Flinched" by Mary Cronk Farrell
Now, AI assistants can build an automated strategy from simple written prompts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
Students will then, on the same day, travel to the Broad for guided tours, discussions and writing prompts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
This prompts the question of whether we could just store more of this excess water for when we need it?
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
Parents supervising a teen account would get daily notifications of time spent, prompts to review settings and the power to adjust school hours.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
As he sees the look of horror that this suggestion prompts, he quickly backtracks.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
To keep that rhythm, the prompter has to talk over the other actor’s lines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026
Those accounts accused Harris of making use of the prompter to answer questions from the audience, asked in English and Spanish, causing Univision producers to set the record straight late Thursday night.
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2024
I'd like to see how she performs more off the cuff and without an ability to read from the prompter.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2024
And this is literally live on TV on Sunday with Finneas and the prompter just threw me off.
From New York Times ● Apr. 8, 2022
The cadet, standing up, got nervous when he did not know what to say, and only heard imperfectly what his prompter said.
From The Gentleman Cadet His Career and Adventures at the Royal Military Academy Woolwich by A.W. Drayson
Needed: "Additional and improved bombers, airborne alert, more missiles of existing types, speeded production of Polaris submarines, the promptest possible dispersal and hardening of bases, and a program for civil defense."
From Time Magazine Archive
The day Yastrzemski steps out, museum curators will mark him for promptest delivery.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Federal Reserve Board's first credit-easing step, in May 1953, "was the promptest response to an economic decline ever taken by a central bank in any country."
From Time Magazine Archive
With slavery abolished, the tendency of his mind was towards a lenient policy in Southern matters and for the promptest mode of reconstruction.
From Twenty Years of Congress, Volume 2 From Lincoln to Garfield, with a Review of the Events Which Led to the Political Revolution of 1860 by James Gillespie Blaine
It was so much to have actually started her ball rolling; and, at the moment, it seemed that Uncle Paul must send it bounding back in the promptest and most delightful of letters.
From The S. W. F. Club by Caroline E. (Caroline Elliott Hoogs) Jacobs
The company later characterized the departure as a “business decision,” but declined to explain what business consideration prompted such a sudden termination.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
In Malaysia, soaring pollution levels prompted the government on Friday to declare an emergency in a region of the Sarawak state in Borneo, with nearly 650 schools closed next week.
From Barron's ● Sep. 5, 2026
His comments prompted a reversal in yield rises which continued overnight and into European trading.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
The incident prompted criticism from MPs and police.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
Even with scripts, the kids playing Julie and Chet had to be prompted several times.
From "It All Comes Down to This" by Karen English
The electric vehicle company deployed its first Cybercabs in Austin, Texas, on Thursday night, prompting federal regulators to investigate whether the vehicle was properly certified.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
The lack of rain has contributed to water shortages and rationing in some communities, prompting Puerto Rico's governor to declare a state of emergency in late July.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
Chinese companies have released powerful open-weight models in recent weeks which let users download the numerical parameters that determine their behavior, prompting administration officials to consider restricting access to those tools due to security concerns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
Kalshi said its compliance team concluded his activity showed signs of insider dealing, prompting the lifetime ban.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
A growth on her adrenal gland had turned up on a Bellevue CAT scan, prompting a visit to an endocrinologist.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
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.
