prəuz n. & v. --n. 1
the ordinary form of the
written or
spoken language (opp.
POETRY, VERSE) (Milton's prose works). 2 a passage of prose,
esp.
for translation into a
foreign language. 3 a
tedious speech or
conversation. 4 a plain
matter-of-fact quality (the prose of existence). 5 Eccl. =
SEQUENCE 8. --v. 1 intr. (usu. foll. by
about,
away, etc.)
talk tediously (was prosing away about
his dog). 2 tr.
turn (a
poem etc.) into prose. øprose
idyll a
short description in prose of a
picturesque, esp.
rustic,
incident,
character, etc. prose poem (or poetry) a
piece of
imaginative poetic writing in prose. øøproser n. [ME f. OF f. L prosa (oratio)
straightforward (discourse), fem. of prosus, earlier prorsus direct]