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
Lloyd Russell-Moyle tried to block the Speaker by lying across him momentarily to stop him leaving to the House of Lords in the official ceremony to prorogue parliament.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 10, 2019
On Wednesday, Johnson asked Queen Elizabeth II to suspend — or prorogue, to use the technical term — Parliament.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 31, 2019
The Emperor may prorogue, adjourn, or dissolve, the chamber of representatives.
From Memoirs of the Private Life, Return, and Reign of Napoleon in 1815, Vol. II by Fleury de Chaboulon, Pierre Alexandre Édouard, baron
While the Liberal Party holds its internal contest, parliament is prorogued until March 24.
From Salon ● Jan. 8, 2025
After a flurry of last-minute legislation, Parliament will be prorogued, or formally suspended, in a ceremony featuring hat-doffing, lords in ermine-trimmed robes and commands in Norman French.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
Parliament was in session but was prorogued on Monday through a government notification uploaded on its website.
From Reuters ● Jul. 4, 2023
Parliament has been prorogued, there have been a few early jabs, and a consensus is already beginning to emerge about how everything will play out online.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 12, 2019
The governor prorogued the assembly before a vote could be taken upon the committee's action, but the instructions, nevertheless, were sent.
From The Colonization of North America 1492-1783 by Bolton, Herbert Eugene
The court ruling does not prevent him from proroguing again in order to hold one, as long as it does not stop Parliament carrying out its duties "without reasonable justification".
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2019
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
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
So what exactly does the move, known as proroguing Parliament, actually mean for the government and the critical decision-making in the weeks leading up to the deadline?
From New York Times ● Aug. 28, 2019
He is the nominal head of the executive, summoning and proroguing the Legislature, appointing and dismissing ministers, and exercising, upon the advice of his ministers, the prerogative of pardon.
From Impressions of South Africa by Bryce, James Bryce, Viscount
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.
