Prussian
Americanadjective
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of or relating to Prussia or its inhabitants.
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characterized by, exemplifying, or resembling Prussianism.
noun
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a native or inhabitant of Prussia.
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(originally) one of a Lettic people formerly inhabiting territory along and near the coast at the southeastern corner of the Baltic Sea.
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a Baltic language formerly spoken in Prussia; Old Prussian. Pruss
adjective
noun
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a German native or inhabitant of Prussia
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a member of a Baltic people formerly inhabiting the coastal area of the SE Baltic
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See Old Prussian
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Prussian
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.
Rudolf Virchow, a 19th-century Prussian pathologist, considered organisms a kind of “cellular democracy,” a harmonious republic of cooperating cells.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026
In 1814 Napoleon fought a battle at Arcis-sur-Aube against the invading Austrian, Prussian and Russian armies, and two years later German immigrants invited by the Russian government named their settlement Artsyz, after the battle.
From BBC ● Mar. 18, 2026
By 1908, Wilhelm’s attitude toward the U.S. was more benevolent, and he offered President Theodore Roosevelt an elite corps of Prussian soldiers to be posted in California, supposedly to fend off a Japanese invasion.
From Salon ● Mar. 15, 2026
Even Gast and O’Sullivan wouldn’t count as Heritage Americans by the strictest definition, since the former was Prussian and the latter was the son of Irish and English immigrants.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2025
Prussian Junkers had the reputation of being stiff and arrogant, but that seemed an unfair generalization.
From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
