prose

[ prohz ]

/ proʊz /

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See synonyms for: prose / prosed / prosing on Thesaurus.com

noun

the ordinary form of spoken or written language, without metrical structure, as distinguished from poetry or verse.

matter-of-fact, commonplace, or dull expression, quality, discourse, etc.

Liturgy. a hymn sung after the gradual, originating from a practice of setting words to the jubilatio of the alleluia.

adjective

of, in, or pertaining to prose.

commonplace; dull; prosaic.

verb (used with object), prosed, pros·ing.

to turn into or express in prose.

verb (used without object), prosed, pros·ing.

to write or talk in a dull, matter-of-fact manner.

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CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of prose

1300–50; Middle English <Middle French <Latin prōsa (ōrātiō) literally, straightforward (speech), feminine of prōsus, for prōrsus, contraction of prōversus, past participle of prōvertere to turn forward, equivalent to prō-pro-¹ + vertere to turn

OTHER WORDS FROM prose

proselike, adjective

Words nearby prose

proscenium, prosciutto, proscribe, proscription, proscriptive, prose, Prosecco, prosect, prosector, prosecute, prosecuting attorney

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use prose in a sentence

Ten books in, Whitehead has established a pattern of unpredictability, experimenting across narrative types, structures and even genres, though always delivering sharp observation and rich prose.
'The World Always Outwits Human Ingenuity.' How the Energetic Cover of Colson Whitehead’s Upcoming Novel Harlem Shuffle Hints at the Heist Within|Lucy Feldman|February 2, 2021|Time
It is the voice that carries the performance — a voice that sounds, simply, the way Twain’s prose reads.
Actor Hal Holbrook, indelible portrayer of Mark Twain, dies at 95|Adam Bernstein|February 2, 2021|Washington Post
"Red Sands," by Caroline EdenSharp, place-hungry prose invites readers to the desert cafes and city kitchens of Central Asia, in a vivid book leavened with accessible recipes.
Take a culinary journey with these new travel-inspired cookbooks|Jen Rose Smith|January 22, 2021|Washington Post
Take GPT-3 by OpenAI, which produces startling human-like prose that’s both grammatically correct and stays mostly on topic.
A Language AI Is Accurately Predicting Covid-19 ‘Escape’ Mutations|Shelly Fan|January 19, 2021|Singularity Hub

Still, Owusu’s brilliance as a prose writer keeps me hooked even in these moments of uncertainty.
For a multiracial writer, a life marked by earthquakes and other upheavals|Gabrielle Bellot|January 15, 2021|Washington Post
Francine Prose, in a testament to her talents, has managed to create a wartime saga that is both original and epic.
French Lesbian Auto-Racer Turns Nazi Spy: Francine Prose’s Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932|Jessica Ferri|April 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Prose has created an entire world populated with characters that jump off the page.
French Lesbian Auto-Racer Turns Nazi Spy: Francine Prose’s Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932|Jessica Ferri|April 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In Good Prose: The Art of Nonfiction, they record that obsession.
Book Bag: Tracy Kidder and Richard Todd on The Art of Nonfiction|Tracy Kidder, Richard Todd|January 22, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Washington, DC, just a few blocks from Politics and Prose bookstore.
Joshua Foer: How I Write|Noah Charney|January 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The parallel to which Mr. Ward refers is that contained in the earlier part of the Prose Lancelot.
The Three Days' Tournament|Jessie L. Weston
Finally, when a child, he was carried off by a water maiden, meer-wîb (incident 7) (Lanzelet—Prose Lancelot).
The Three Days' Tournament|Jessie L. Weston
It is unnecessary to say that nothing resembles "Gaspard de la nuit" less than the "Poems in Prose."
Charles Baudelaire, His Life|Thophile Gautier
According to the Prose Edda, the giant, overcome with fright, took out his knife and severed Thor's line.
The Elder Eddas of Saemund Sigfusson; and the Younger Eddas of Snorre Sturleson|Saemund Sigfusson and Snorre Sturleson
Prose, art aside, must needs bristle with things to be discovered; but in verse the most trifling things appear.
Bouvard and Pcuchet, part 2|Gustave Flaubert

British Dictionary definitions for prose

prose

/ (prəʊz) /

noun

spoken or written language as in ordinary usage, distinguished from poetry by its lack of a marked metrical structure

a passage set for translation into a foreign language

commonplace or dull discourse, expression, etc

RC Church a hymn recited or sung after the gradual at Mass

(modifier) written in prose

(modifier) matter-of-fact

verb

to write or say (something) in prose

(intr) to speak or write in a tedious style

Derived forms of prose

proselike, adjective

Word Origin for prose

C14: via Old French from Latin phrase prōsa ōrātiō straightforward speech, from prorsus prosaic, from prōvertere to turn forwards, from pro- 1 + vertere to turn

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

prose

Origin of prose

OTHER WORDS FROM prose

Words nearby prose

Words related to prose

How to use prose in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for prose

Derived forms of prose

Word Origin for prose