Home › Arts & Literature › Literary Genres & Formats › prose

prose

PROHZ /proʊz/

nounadjectiveB2GRESATAP Literature

GeneralAcademic

Written or spoken language in its ordinary form, without metrical structure, as opposed to verse or poetry.

Focuses on standard grammatical structure and natural conversational rhythm rather than rhythmic verse.

The story behind the word. Shortened from Latin 'prosa oratio', meaning 'straightforward or direct speech'. It derives from 'prorsus' (turned straight ahead). Early Roman rhetoricians used it to distinguish plain, continuous speech from the turns and loops of poetic verse.

Word relationships

text: 'Text' refers to written words in general, whereas 'prose' specifically excludes metrical poetry.
writing: 'Writing' is a broad act, whereas 'prose' denotes a non-poetic structural style.

verse: Verse relies on metric rhythm, rhyme, and poetic line breaks.
poetry: Poetry uses metrical or artistic lineation rather than paragraph structure.

Commonly confused with

prosaic: 'Prosaic' is an adjective meaning dull or commonplace, derived from prose but carrying a negative value judgment.

Word family

prosaic (adjective): Lacking poetic beauty; commonplace or dull.
prosaically (adverb): In a dull or ordinary manner.

Collocations

purple prose
clear prose
prose style
prose narrative

Idioms & expressions

prosaic reality

Example sentences

"Her luminous prose transformed a mundane domestic scene into a breathtaking study of human emotion." Literary Criticism
"Clear, direct prose is usually preferred over ornate phrasing in modern journalism." Stylistic Analysis

Memory hook

PROSE goes PROCEEDING Straight Ahead. Prose proceeds without rhythmic pauses.

When not to use

Do not use 'prose' as a synonym for 'story'; non-fiction essays are prose, but they are not fictional stories.

Fun facts

In Molière's play 'The Bourgeois Gentleman', the main character is astonished to learn he has been speaking prose his whole life without knowing it!