prorogue
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to discontinue a session of (the British Parliament or a similar body).
- Synonyms:
- suspend
-
to defer or postpone, or to extend past the end of a term, as a lease or other contract.
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of prorogue
First recorded in 1375–1425; from late Middle English proroge, from Latin prōrogāre “to prolong, protract, defer,” literally, “to ask publicly,” equivalent to prō- pro- 1 + rogāre “to ask, propose”
Explanation
Prorogue is a technical way of saying "put off" or "delay." Usually, it describes something a government body does: when a congress or parliament prorogues, it's putting off business for a while. Prorogue comes from the Latin word prorogare meaning "to stretch out." When you stop a meeting and decide to meet again at a later time, this "stretches out" the work being done. Remember that prorogue is close to prolong, which means pretty much the same thing, but without a break.
Vocabulary lists containing prorogue
The Balcony Scene from "Romeo and Juliet"
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This Week In Words: August 31–September 6, 2019
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"The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet," Vocabulary from Act 2
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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:
The governor general has a largely ceremonial job performing functions such as swearing in governments and formally signing legislation, but is also the commander-in-chief of the military and can summon, prorogue or dissolve parliament.
From Reuters ● Jul. 6, 2021
And she used withering language to describe the effect of the court’s ruling on the formal order to prorogue.
From New York Times ● Sep. 24, 2019
The Court of Session heard that the prime minister was sent a note on 15 August asking if he wanted to prorogue parliament from mid-September.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2019
These are from my colleague Severin Carrell, who has been covering the legal challenge in Edinburgh to the government’s decision to prorogue parliament for five weeks from next week.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 3, 2019
I was so fortunate as to arrive just in time to see Lord Harcourt, with the usual ceremonies, prorogue the Parliament.
From A Tour in Ireland 1776-1779 by Morley, Henry
While the Liberal Party holds its internal contest, parliament is prorogued until March 24.
From Salon ● Jan. 8, 2025
Canada's parliament has been prorogued - or suspended - until 24 March to allow time for the leadership race.
From BBC ● Jan. 7, 2025
Parliament was in session but was prorogued on Monday through a government notification uploaded on its website.
From Reuters ● Jul. 4, 2023
Parliament was formally suspended, or prorogued, on Thursday in a tradition-steeped ceremony involving ermine-draped members of the House of Lords and an official proclaiming “the queen wills it” in Norman French.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 28, 2022
On the 20th of June 1837 King William IV. died, and Parliament, having been prorogued by the young queen in person, was dissolved on the 17th of the following month.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 1 "Gichtel, Johann" to "Glory" by Various
One of the many difficulties the justices face is how to reconcile differences between English, Scottish and Northern Ireland laws in the context of similar challenges against the prime minister’s proroguing of parliament.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 16, 2019
The process, known as proroguing, usually passes without much notice, except for the pompous rituals and antiquarian costumes that accompany it.
From New York Times ● Sep. 10, 2019
Johnson claimed that proroguing Parliament was just an efficient way to get the government organized regarding its domestic agenda, such as new plans for the National Health Service and strategies for fighting crime.
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 30, 2019
The official term for shutting down Parliament is "proroguing" and it normally happens once a year for a short period - usually in April or May.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2019
Her Majesty was also a constituent part of the Legislature, with power to delegate to the Lord Lieutenant the prerogative of assenting to or dissenting from Bills, and of summoning, proroguing, and dissolving Parliament.
From Handbook of Home Rule Being articles on the Irish question by Godkin, Edwin Lawrence
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.
