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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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

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

How to use prose in a sentence

The Proses contain the main arguments; the Metres serve for embellishment and recreation.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 2 (of 7)|Geoffrey Chaucer

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 related to prose

How to use prose in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for prose

Derived forms of prose

Word Origin for prose