prostrate

[ pros-treyt ]

/ ˈprɒs treɪt /

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See synonyms for: prostrate / prostrated on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), pros·trat·ed, pros·trat·ing.

to cast (oneself) face down on the ground in humility, submission, or adoration.

to lay flat, as on the ground.

to throw down level with the ground.

to overthrow, overcome, or reduce to helplessness.

to reduce to physical weakness or exhaustion.

adjective

lying flat or at full length, as on the ground.

lying face down on the ground, as in token of humility, submission, or adoration.

overthrown, overcome, or helpless: a country left prostrate by natural disasters.

physically weak or exhausted.

submissive.

utterly dejected or depressed; disconsolate.

Botany. (of a plant or stem) lying flat on the ground.

OTHER WORDS FOR prostrate

6 prone, supine, recumbent.

See synonyms for prostrate on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of prostrate

1350–1400; (adj.) Middle English prostrat<Latin prōstrātus, past participle of prōsternere to throw prone, equivalent to prō-pro-¹ + strā-, variant stem of sternere to stretch out + -tus past participle suffix; (v.) Middle English prostraten, derivative of the adj.

OTHER WORDS FROM prostrate

pros·tra·tive

[pros-truh-tiv], /ˈprɒs trə tɪv/, adjectivepros·tra·tor, nounun·pros·trat·ed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH prostrate

1. prone, prostate, prostrate , supine2. prostate, prostrate

Words nearby prostrate

prostitute, prostitution, prostomiate, prostomium, prostoon, prostrate, prostration, prostyle, prosumer, prosy, prosyllogism

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

How to use prostrate in a sentence

Mules pulled ramshackle carts, children played outside mud houses, burqa-shrouded women lay prostrate and begging in the middle of dusty roads.
Afghanistan: What’s at Stake?|Kate Bartlett|June 1, 2021|Ozy
Prostrate she fell on the floor; but hearing a waiter say, 'Up stairs, madam, you may have a room to yourself.'
Camilla|Fanny Burney
Prostrate or ascending, much branched; leaves round-obovate to rhomboidal, 3–10 long.
The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States|Asa Gray
Prostrate beside him, Sembobitis and Menkera worshipped, their faces touching the stone.
Balthasar|Anatole France

Prostrate under the dread of death, her innermost nature—stripped of the concealments of her later life—was revealed to view.
I Say No|Wilkie Collins
Prostrate by his side lay the prince, in a state of insensibility, the blood faintly oozing from a wound in his arm.
Heroines of the Crusades|C. A. Bloss

British Dictionary definitions for prostrate

prostrate

adjective (ˈprɒstreɪt)

lying with the face downwards, as in submission

exhausted physically or emotionally

helpless or defenceless

(of a plant) growing closely along the ground

verb (prɒˈstreɪt) (tr)

to bow or cast (oneself) down, as in submission

to lay or throw down flat, as on the ground

to make helpless or defenceless

to make exhausted

Derived forms of prostrate

prostration, noun

Word Origin for prostrate

C14: from Latin prōsternere to throw to the ground, from prō- before + sternere to lay low

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

Scientific definitions for prostrate

prostrate

[ prŏs′trāt′ ]

Growing flat along the ground. Creeping jenny, pennyroyal, and many species of ivy have a prostrate growth habit.

prostrate

OTHER WORDS FOR prostrate

Origin of prostrate

OTHER WORDS FROM prostrate

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH prostrate

Words nearby prostrate

Words related to prostrate

How to use prostrate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for prostrate

Derived forms of prostrate

Word Origin for prostrate

Scientific definitions for prostrate