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.
Phrases and idioms:
prose 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.
Derivatives:
proser n.
Etymology: ME f. OF f. L prosa (oratio) straightforward (discourse), fem. of prosus, earlier prorsus direct