prostrate

See also: prostate

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈpɹɒstɹeɪt/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈpɹɑstɹeɪt/
• Hyphenation: pros‧trate

Etymology 1

From Middle English prostrat(e) (“prostrate”, also used as the past participle of prostraten), borrowed from Latin prōstrātus, perfect passive participle of prōsternō (“to prostrate”). Participial usage up until Early Modern English.

Adjective

prostrate (not comparable)

1. Lying flat, face-down.

   Synonym: prone

   Antonym: supine

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     Prostrate fall / Before him reverent, and there confess / Humbly our faults.

   • 1945, Sir Winston Churchill, VE Day speech from House of Commons:

     Finally almost the whole world was combined against the evil-doers, who are now prostrate before us.

2. (figuratively) Emotionally devastated.
3. Physically incapacitated from environmental exposure or debilitating disease.

   He was prostrate from the extreme heat.

4. (botany) Trailing on the ground; procumbent.
5. (obsolete) Prostrated.

Derived terms

• deprostrate
• prostrate amaranth
• prostrately
• prostrate pigweed
• prostrater

Translations

lying flat, facedown

Bulgarian: легнал (bg) (legnal), проснат (bg) (prosnat) Czech: ležící na břiše Finnish: mahallaan German: niedergestreckt (de) Greek: πρηνής (el) m or f (prinís) Hungarian: hason fekvő Maori: taitakoto, tāpapa Norwegian: prostrert Russian: распростёртый (ru) (rasprostjórtyj), лежа́щий ничко́м (ležáščij ničkóm) Spanish: postrado (es), acostado boca abajo, prostrado (disused) Welsh: ar ei hyd, ar ei orwedd

emotionally devastated

Finnish: lyöty (fi), maassa (fi)

physically incapacitated from environmental exposure or debilitating disease

Finnish: toimintakyvytön

botany: trailing on the ground; procumbent — see procumbent

Etymology 2

From Middle English prostraten (“(reflexive) to prostrate; (with doun) to fall down in a state of humility or submission”), from prostrat(e) (“prostrate, prostrated”, also used as the past participle of prostraten) +‎ -en (verb-forming suffix), from Latin prōstrātus, see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.

Verb

prostrate (third-person singular simple present prostrates, present participle prostrating, simple past and past participle prostrated)

2. (often reflexive) To lie flat or face-down.
3. (also figurative) To throw oneself down in submission.

   Synonym: grovel

   • 1922, Maneckji Nusserwanji Dhalla, Zoroastrian Civilization‎, page 228:

     Those who had the privilege of approaching him, had to prostrate themselves before him in profound humility […]

   • 2014 July 10, Stephen Glover, “Sorry, but Gandhi statue in Westminster is a cheap stunt by ministers with scant knowledge of history greasing up to India”, in Daily Mail‎:

     But I take the view that the statue is a cheap and cynical stunt by ministers with scant knowledge of history, whose only interest lies in greasing up to modern Indian politicians. With little or no dignity, they shamelessly prostrate themselves in the most craven way.

4. To cause to lie down, to flatten.
   • 1835, William Gilmore Simms, The Partisan, Harper, Chapter XIV, page 175:

     How many of these mighty pines were to be prostrated under that approaching tempest!

5. (figuratively) To overcome or overpower.
   • 1936 June 30, Margaret Mitchell, Gone with the Wind, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, →OCLC:

     Why this very minute she's prostrated with grief.

Usage notes

• Prostrate and prostate are often confused, in spelling if not in meaning.

Derived terms

• unprostrated

Related terms

• prostration

Translations

to lie flat or face-down

Arabic: سَجَدَ (ar) (sajada) Bulgarian: лежа по очи (leža po oči) Chinese: Mandarin: 趴 (zh) (pā), 平臥 / 平卧 (zh) (píngwò) Dutch: zich prosterneren Esperanto: terenkuŝiĝi Finnish: maata pitkällään (flat), maata kasvoillaan (facedown), maata vatsallaan French: prosterner (fr) Greek: κείτομαι μπρούμυτα (keítomai broúmyta), μπρουμυτίζω (broumytízo) Hawaiian: please add this translation if you can Indonesian: bersujud (id) Japanese: 平伏す (ja) (ひれふす, hirefusu) Malay: telangkup Maori: taitakoto, tukupapa, tāpapa Norwegian: prostrere Polish: bić pokłony impf Portuguese: prostrar (pt) Russian: лежа́ть ничко́м impf (ležátʹ ničkóm) Spanish: prostrarse (disused), postrarse (es) Vietnamese: nằm úp, nằm sấp (vi) Yoruba: dọ̀bálẹ̀

to throw oneself down in submission

Arabic: سَجَدَ (ar) (sajada) Bulgarian: унижавам се (unižavam se) Chinese: Mandarin: 匍匐 (zh) (púfú), 伏地 (zh) (fúdì) Dutch: ter aarde werpen Esperanto: adorkliniĝi Finnish: heittäytyä maahan German: niederwerfen (de), erniedrigen (de) Greek: πέφτω μπρούμυτα (péfto broúmyta), μπρουμυτίζω (broumytízo), προσπέφτω (el) (prospéfto) Ancient Greek: προσκυνέω (proskunéō) Hawaiian: please add this translation if you can Malay: bersujud (ms) Norwegian: Bokmål: legge seg flat Portuguese: prostrar-se Russian: па́дать ниц impf (pádatʹ nic), пасть ниц pf (pastʹ nic) Slovak: zvaliť sa Spanish: prostrarse (disused), postrarse (es)

to cause to lie down

Bulgarian: повалям (bg) (povaljam), просвам (bg) (prosvam) Finnish: kaataa (fi), kumota (fi) Greek: υποκλίνομαι (el) (ypoklínomai), προσκυνώ (el) (proskynó) Irish: Old Irish: fo·álgi Latin: prosternō Portuguese: prostrar (pt) Russian: поверга́ть ниц impf (povergátʹ nic), пове́ргнуть ниц pf (povérgnutʹ nic) Slovak: zvaliť Spanish: prostrar (disused), postrar (es)

See also

• kowtow

Anagrams

• Perrottas

Italian

Etymology 1

Verb

prostrate

1. inflection of prostrare:
   1. second-person plural present indicative
   2. second-person plural imperative

Etymology 2

Participle

prostrate f pl

1. feminine plural of prostrato

Latin

Participle

prōstrāte

1. vocative masculine singular of prōstrātus