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used except with reference to discourse written or spoken; as, a prolix oration; a prolix poem; a prolix sermon. With wig prolix, down flowing to his waist. Cowper.

The preface or introduction to a discourse, poem, or performance; as, the prologue of Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales;" esp., a discourse or poem spoken before a dramatic performance

The son of Iapetus (one of the Titans) and Clymene, fabled by the poets to have surpassed all mankind in knowledge, and to have formed men of clay to whom he gave life by means of fire stolen from heaven. Jupiter, being angry at this, sent Mercury to bind Prometheus to Mount Caucasus, where a vulture preyed upon his li…

e mind or affections, usually in an ill sense. Followed by to. "Prone to mischief." Shak. Poets are nearly all prone to melancholy. Landor.

n acquired or artificial quality; that which is given by art, or bestowed by man; as, the poem has the properties which constitute excellence.

The part of a poem in which the author states the subject or matter of it. Leaves of proposition (Jewish Antiq.), the showbread. Wyclif (Luke vi. 4).

The prow or fore part of a ship. [Poetic] "Galleys with vermilion prores." Pope.

Of or pertaining to prose; resembling prose; in the form of prose; unpoetical; writing or using prose; as, a prosaic composition. Cudworth.

The quality or state of being prosaic; a prosaic manner or style. [R.] Poe.

A writer of prose; an unpoetical writer. "An estimable prosaist." I. Taylor.

The ordinary language of men in speaking or writing; language not cast in poetical measure or rhythm; -- contradistinguished from verse, or metrical composition. I speak in prose, and let him rymes make. Chaucer. Things unattempted yet in prose or rhyme. Milton. I wish our clever young poets would remember my homely de…

e, enterprise, conflict, or the like. Shakespeare, the protagonist on the great of modern poetry. De Quincey.

The first part of a drama, of a poem, or the like; the introduction; opposed to epitasis. B. Jonson.

To make death in us live. Milton. Can honor's voice provoke the silent dust Gray. To the poet the meaning is what he pleases to make it, what it provokes in his own soul. J. Burroughs.

r demands the exercise of, discretion or prudence; -- usually in the pl. Many stanzas, in poetic measures, contain rules relating to common prudentials as well as to religion. I. Watts.

A sacred song; a poetical composition for use in the praise or worship of God. Humus devout and holy psalms Singing everlastingly. Milton.

e of clay and sand, kneaded or worked, when wet, to render it impervious to water. Puddle poet, a low or worthless poet. [R.] Fuller.

A pluck; loss or violence suffered. [Poetic] Two pulls at once; His lady banished, and a limb lopped off. Shak.

One of a class of sacred Hindoo poetical works in the Sanskrit language which treat of the creation, destruction, and renovation of worlds, the genealogy and achievements of gods and heroes, the reigns of the Manus, and the transactions of their descendants. The principal Puranas are eighteen in number, and there are t…

In a purposed manner; according to purpose or design; purposely. A poem composed purposedly of the Trojan war. Holland.