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Prosaic Has Literary Origins
In the past, any text that was not poetic was prosaic. Back then, prosaic carried no negative connotations; it simply indicated that a written work was made up of prose. That sense clearly owes much to the meaning of the word's Latin source prosa, meaning "prose." Poetry is viewed, however, as the more beautiful, imaginative, and emotional type of writing, and prose was relegated to the status of mundane and plain-Jane. As a result, English speakers started using prosaic to refer to anything considered matter-of-fact or ordinary, and they gradually transformed it into a synonym for "colorless," "drab," "lifeless," and "lackluster."
Examples of prosaic in a Sentence
Mordecai Richler, New York Times Book Review, 8 Oct. 1989
In addition to the prosaic essentials of life—wheat, rice, and salt—the Portuguese found exotic stores of pepper, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and other spices.
—Daniel J. Boorstin, The Discoverers, 1983
There is, of course, an ordinary medicine, an everyday medicine, humdrum, prosaic, a medicine for stubbed toes, quinsies, bunions, and boils …
—Oliver Sacks, Awakenings, 1973
… where did he get his money? He had to eat and drink, buy apparatus and chemicals, even pay the poor rate. Where did he get the common coin to meet such unavoidable if prosaic obligations?
—Flann O'Brien, The Dalkey Archive, 1964
He has a prosaic writing style.
the prosaic life of a hardworking farmer
She believes the noises are made by ghosts, but I think there's a more prosaic explanation.
John Tamny, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025
Lippert and Broe’s script veers into more prosaic territory as Johan gets desperate and starts over-compensating, for instance by dipping into the door takings at Adonis to help pay for William’s surgery.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 27 June 2025
If that bluntness sound a little prosaic at first, there’s a curt poetry to it that comes into focus listening through 15 tracks that consist almost entirely of sisters Danielle, Alana and Este Haim handing in their respective resignations to long- or short-term partners, effectively immediately.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 20 June 2025
There are hundreds of such passages throughout this 400-page book, which elevates the most prosaic of details, into hymn.
—Leigh Haber, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for prosaic
Cite this Entry
“Prosaic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prosaic. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
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