prosed; prosing
pro se
4 of 4adjective or adverb
ˈprō-ˈsā 
-ˈsē
: on one's own behalf : without an attorney
a pro se action
a defendant's right to proceed pro se
Examples of prose in a Sentence
Noun
… the esteemed critic James Wood reaches out to assure "the common reader" … that his prose is as free as he can make it of what James Joyce termed "the true scholastic stink" of so much academic writing.
—
Walter Kirn, New York Times Book Review, 17 Aug. 2008
Like many two-person writing teams, this one produces its share of three-legged prose and redundancy.
—James McManus, New York Times Book Review, 15 Apr. 2001
In my own work I felt a need to hurry from climax as in film montage, or even in Joycean prose with its strings of firecracker words …
—Arthur Miller, Timebends, 1987
She writes in very clear prose.
Verb
'In the meantime,' said Traddles, coming back to his chair; 'and this is the end of my prosing about myself, I get on as well as I can. I don't make much, but I don't spend much … '
—Charles Dickens, David Copperfield, 1850
Walter Kirn, New York Times Book Review, 17 Aug. 2008
Like many two-person writing teams, this one produces its share of three-legged prose and redundancy.
—James McManus, New York Times Book Review, 15 Apr. 2001
In my own work I felt a need to hurry from climax as in film montage, or even in Joycean prose with its strings of firecracker words …
—Arthur Miller, Timebends, 1987
She writes in very clear prose.
Verb
'In the meantime,' said Traddles, coming back to his chair; 'and this is the end of my prosing about myself, I get on as well as I can. I don't make much, but I don't spend much … '
—Charles Dickens, David Copperfield, 1850
Recent Examples on the Web
Literary Hub, 30 June 2025
That is why his prose, rather than straining to be laugh-out-loud, wears a wise and well-informed smile.
—Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 30 June 2025
Thresholds
june 25, Literary Hub, 25 June 2025
And the vibes were somewhere between downtown book launch and conceptual prank, as On the Rag — L.A.’s buzzy new literary tabloid — celebrated its arrival at Night Gallery with a cigarette-clouded bash full of poetry, prose and potting soil.
—Benjamin Svetkey, HollywoodReporter, 18 June 2025
Matthew L. Roberts, Forbes.com, 4 June 2025
After consulting with his parents, Dempsey decided not to retain counsel as an objector and instead represent himself pro se, figuring his words might carry more weight that way.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for prose
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Noun
Cassandra Whitaker’s debut is a sequence that moves like a long poem, pulsing with the motif of the wolf; individual poems are often split in columns or forged in prose with slashes rather than punctuation or line breaks.
—Literary Hub, 30 June 2025
That is why his prose, rather than straining to be laugh-out-loud, wears a wise and well-informed smile.
—Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 30 June 2025
Adjective
Thresholds is a co-production between Black Mountain Institute and Literary Hub
Jordan sits down with Renee Gladman to talk about prose architecture, Henry James, her fascination with cities, and mushrooms.
—Thresholds
june 25, Literary Hub, 25 June 2025
And the vibes were somewhere between downtown book launch and conceptual prank, as On the Rag — L.A.’s buzzy new literary tabloid — celebrated its arrival at Night Gallery with a cigarette-clouded bash full of poetry, prose and potting soil.
—Benjamin Svetkey, HollywoodReporter, 18 June 2025
Adjective or adverb
Many tax professionals are aware of the variance doctrine and its risks—unfortunately, few pro se taxpayers know of its existence and application, resulting in many good arguments never making it before the court.
—Matthew L. Roberts, Forbes.com, 4 June 2025
After consulting with his parents, Dempsey decided not to retain counsel as an objector and instead represent himself pro se, figuring his words might carry more weight that way.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for prose
Cite this Entry
“Prose.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prose. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
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