prose

adjective

Definition of prosenext
as in unpoetic

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of prose Assorted writers across professions are being falsely accused of using AI if their prose style happens to match that of a large language model. — Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone, 30 May 2026 The ancient prose treatise on the subject of pleasure (kama) provides a brief discussion of men of a third nature (tritiya prakriti) who take the form of women or men. — Charles Preston, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 May 2026 But Carlos Orsi, a scientific journalist with a punchy prose style, gives a lot of credit to what astrology has meant to human beings over the past thousands of years. — David Frum, The Atlantic, 20 May 2026 The book’s superpower is its voice; Herr’s intensely articulate prose stretches to accommodate the crazy experiences and mind-states created when a high-tech corporate military wages war on a low-tech nation. — Time, 12 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for prose
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prose
  1. unpoetic
  2. prosaic
  3. literal
Adjective
  • This was an obtuse and unpoetic diktat, a showy way to miss the fact that a song’s history—its use over time, by real people, inspired by the exigencies of ritual and action—can inform its meaning more than its mere lyrics ever could.
    — Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 15 July 2022
  • Atlanta and its suburbs are a surprisingly Whitmanesque experiment in pluralism, in which unpoetic concrete strip malls substitute for lyrical spears of summer grass.
    — Sanjena Sathian, Los Angeles Times, 18 Mar. 2021
Definition of unpoetic
Adjective
  • Although geopolitical analysts love to talk about turning points, crossroads, and dilemmas, many governments have a prosaic tendency to defy these dramatic predictions and muddle through.
    — Ben Bland, semafor.com, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The building is just a backdrop and usually a prosaic one, at that.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of prosaic
Adjective
  • Playing the helpful citizen, Martinez drove his literal truckload of ALPR bits directly to the Sheriff’s department, where he was promptly taken into custody.
    — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Something at home could be bothering you more than you’d like to admit, perhaps a tense family dynamic or the fact that your apartment is a literal mess.
    — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of literal

Browse Nearby Words

proscriptions
prose
prosecute
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Cite this Entry

“Prose.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prose. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

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