Prowess Meaning
/ˈpɹaʊɪs/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounSkillfulness or extraordinary ability in a particular area of expertise; dexterity, mastery, or proficiency.
nounDistinguished bravery or courage, especially in battle; heroism.
Sentence Examples
His martial arts prowess has already reached a level of sublime perfection.
His prowess with women is legendary.
I wouldn't dare to question your prowess in video games.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The athlete's amazing ____ in swimming earned her three gold medals at the championship.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Her athletic ____ was evident from an early age, winning regional championships at just twelve.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English prowesse, prouwesse, proues, prouesce, prouesse (“bravery in battle; act of bravery; excellence; nobility of character; intelligence”), from Old French proeche, proesce, proeësche (“goodness; excellence; bravery”), from Old French preu, prou, prouz, proz, pruz (“good; excellent; brave”). Compare English proud.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"When in liquor he would make foolish wagers. On one of these too frequent occasions he was boasting of his prowess as a pedestrian and athlete, and the outcome was a match against nature. For a stake of one sovereign he undertook to run all the way to Coventry and back, a distance of something more than forty miles."
— 1888 October 14, Ambrose Bierce, “An Unfinished Race”, in The San Francisco Examiner, →OCLC; republished in Can Such Things Be?, Washington, D.C.: The Neale Publishing Company, 1903, →OCLC, page 313:
"There is such a sense of inferiority sometimes when it comes to facing Germany, with all their World Cups, their penalty prowess and easy sophistication, it might come as a surprise to learn that, in head-to-head encounters, England actually match their opponents."
— 2017 November 10, Daniel Taylor, “Youthful England earn draw with Germany but Lingard rues late miss”, in The Guardian, London, archived from the original on 28 Mar 2018:
"That libertie Poets of late in their invectives have exceeded: they have borne their ſword up where it is not lawfull for a poynado, that is but the page of proweſſe, to intermeddle."
— 1592, Tho[mas] Nashe, “A Dash through the Dudgen Sonnet against Greene”, in Strange Newes, of the Intercepting Certaine Letters and a Convoy of Verses, […], London: […] Iohn Danter, […], →OCLC; republished in J[ohn] Payne Collier, editor, Illustrations of Early English Literature (Miscellaneous Tracts; Temp. Eliz. and Jac. I), volume II, London: Privately printed, [1867], →OCLC, page 33:
"[…] But, wroth because this man in full assembly, / Came and reviled thee, thou wouldst shew thy prowess, / The prowess that attends thee, that henceforth / Not e'er a man might think to scorn thy prowess, […]"
— 1863, Homer, translated by T[homas] S[tarling] Norgate, The Odyssey; or, The Ten Years’ Wandering of Odusseus, after the Ten Years’ Siege of Troy. Reproduced in Dramatic Blank Verse, London: Williams and Norgate, […], →OCLC, page 158:
"A beautiful great lady, past her prime, / Behold her dreaming in her easy chair; / Grey robed, and veiled, in laces old and rare, / Her smiling eyes see but the vanished time / Of splendid prowess, and of deeds sublime."
— 1910, Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “England, Awake!”, in Poems of Experience, London: Gay & Hancock, Ltd., 12 and 13 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, published 1917, →OCLC, page 38; republished as More Poems, Toronto, Ont.: McClelland & Stewart Publishers, 1919, →OCLC, stanza 1, page 246:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The athlete's amazing ____ in swimming earned her three gold medals at the championship.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Her athletic ____ was evident from an early age, winning regional championships at just twelve.