Basic Details
Word: Prose
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Ordinary written or spoken language in sentences and paragraphs, not arranged in lines with rhythm like poetry.
Synonyms: writing, text
Antonyms: poetry, verse
Sounds like: pros (plural of pro: professionals, or the good points of something)
Word origin: From Latin prosa oratio, straightforward speech.
How to Spell Prose
Syllables: prose
Tricky part: It sounds like proze, but it is spelt with an s and a silent final e, just like rose and nose.
Watch out for: proze, prosse, proase
Memory tip: Prose is a rose with a p in front. A rose has petals; prose has paragraphs.
Usage Examples
Example 1: Our English book has a poetry section and a prose section.
Example 2: Premchand wrote his stories in simple, clear prose.
Example 3: The teacher asked us to retell the poem in our own prose.
Fun Fact
The Latin prosa meant going straight ahead, which suits prose: it runs on in sentences instead of turning back at the end of each line as verse does.
Practise the CREST Way
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the letters in the sentence to form a meaningful word:
For homework, write a short paragraph of sorep about your favourite festival.
a) prove
b) probe
c) pose
d) prose
Show answer
d) prose. Probe has a b, prove a v and pose is a letter short; with r, o, s and e after the p, the word is prose.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word prose as used in the sentence:
Rabindranath Tagore wrote novels and essays in prose as well as more than two thousand songs.
a) verse
b) writing
c) text
d) story
Show answer
a) verse. Writing in lines with rhythm is verse, the form that stands against prose.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
For the school magazine, Nikhil wrote a short piece of proze about the monsoon instead of the poem the editor had asked for in the meeting.
a) editor
b) monsoon
c) proze
d) magazine
Show answer
c) proze. The z sound in prose is spelt with s, the same as in rose.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these is usually written in prose?
a) a newspaper report
b) a sonnet
c) a limerick
d) a nursery rhyme
Show answer
a) a newspaper report
2. Prose is different from poetry because prose ____.
a) can only be sung aloud
b) must be very short
c) is written in ordinary sentences
d) always has rhyming lines
Show answer
c) is written in ordinary sentences
