prose
Americannoun
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the ordinary form of spoken or written language, without metrical structure, as distinguished from poetry or verse.
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matter-of-fact, commonplace, or dull expression, quality, discourse, etc.
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Liturgy. a hymn sung after the gradual, originating from a practice of setting words to the jubilatio of the alleluia.
adjective
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of, in, or pertaining to prose.
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commonplace; dull; prosaic.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
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spoken or written language as in ordinary usage, distinguished from poetry by its lack of a marked metrical structure
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a passage set for translation into a foreign language
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commonplace or dull discourse, expression, etc
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RC Church a hymn recited or sung after the gradual at Mass
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(modifier) written in prose
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(modifier) matter-of-fact
verb
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to write or say (something) in prose
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(intr) to speak or write in a tedious style
Other Word Forms
- proselike adjective
Etymology
Origin of prose
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin prōsa (ōrātiō), literally, “straightforward (speech),” feminine of prōsus, prōrsus, contraction of prōversus “turned forward,” past participle of prōvertere “to turn forward,” equivalent to prō- pro- 1 + vertere “to turn”
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.
Mr. Mauch’s prose is not flowery, but direct, single-minded and determined, like the man himself.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 6, 2026
We are drowning in a sea of abysmal, artificially generated prose.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026
Ms. Millet is efficient and empathetic in her prose, but her message—that we must reckon with environmental catastrophe and our own moral complacency—blows through this novel like its own bracing storm.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026
When he showed it to readers he trusted, they told him, “‘This isn’t a novel, it’s a screenplay in prose.’
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 2, 2026
The lyrics for each section were preceded by a paragraph of prose that augmented the narrative laid out in the lyrics.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
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.
