Webster's Unabridged Dictionary - Letter P - Page 139

Province (n.) A region under the supervision or direction of any special person; the district or division of a country, especially an ecclesiastical division, over which one has jurisdiction; as, the province of Canterbury, or that in which the archbishop of Canterbury exercises ecclesiastical authority.

Province (n.) The proper or appropriate business or duty of a person or body; office; charge; jurisdiction; sphere.

Province (n.) Specif.: Any political division of the Dominion of Canada, having a governor, a local legislature, and representation in the Dominion parliament. Hence, colloquially, The Provinces, the Dominion of Canada.

Provincial (a.) Of or pertaining to province; constituting a province; as, a provincial government; a provincial dialect.

Provincial (a.) Exhibiting the ways or manners of a province; characteristic of the inhabitants of a province; not cosmopolitan; countrified; not polished; rude; hence, narrow; illiberal.

Provincial (a.) Of or pertaining to an ecclesiastical province, or to the jurisdiction of an archbishop; not ecumenical; as, a provincial synod.

Provincial (a.) Of or pertaining to Provence; Provencal.

Provincial (n.) A person belonging to a province; one who is provincial.

Provincial (n.) A monastic superior, who, under the general of his order, has the direction of all the religious houses of the same fraternity in a given district, called a province of the order.

Provincialism (n.) A word, or a manner of speaking, peculiar to a province or a district remote from the mother country or from the metropolis; a provincial characteristic; hence, narrowness; illiberality.

Provincialist (n.) One who lives in a province; a provincial.

Provinciality (n.) The quality or state of being provincial; peculiarity of language characteristic of a province.

Provincialized (imp. & p. p.) of Provincialize

Provincializing (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Provincialize

Provincialize (v. t.) To render provincial.

Provincially (adv.) In a provincial manner.

Provinciate (v. t.) To convert into a province or provinces.

Provine (v. t.) To lay a stock or branch of a vine in the ground for propagation.

Provision (n.) The act of providing, or making previous preparation.

Provision (n.) That which is provided or prepared; that which is brought together or arranged in advance; measures taken beforehand; preparation.

Provision (n.) Especially, a stock of food; any kind of eatables collected or stored; -- often in the plural.

Provision (n.) That which is stipulated in advance; a condition; a previous agreement; a proviso; as, the provisions of a contract; the statute has many provisions.

Provision (n.) A canonical term for regular induction into a benefice, comprehending nomination, collation, and installation.

Provision (n.) A nomination by the pope to a benefice before it became vacant, depriving the patron of his right of presentation.

Provisioned (imp. & p. p.) of Provision

Provisioning (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Provision

Provision (v. t.) To supply with food; to victual; as, to provision a garrison.

Provisional (a.) Of the nature of a provision; serving as a provision for the time being; -- used of partial or temporary arrangements; as, a provisional government; a provisional treaty.

Provisionally (adv.) By way of provision for the time being; temporarily.

Provisionary (a.) Provisional.

Provisos (pl. ) of Proviso

Proviso (n.) An article or clause in any statute, agreement, contract, grant, or other writing, by which a condition is introduced, usually beginning with the word provided; a conditional stipulation that affects an agreement, contract, law, grant, or the like; as, the contract was impaired by its proviso.

Provisor (n.) One who provides; a purveyor.

Provisor (n.) The purveyor, steward, or treasurer of a religious house.

Provisor (n.) One who is regularly inducted into a benefice. See Provision, 5.

Provisor (n.) One who procures or receives a papal provision. See Provision, 6.

Provisorily (adv.) In a provisory manner; conditionally; subject to a proviso; as, to admit a doctrine provisorily.

Provisorship (n.) The office or position of a provisor.

Provisory (a.) Of the nature of a proviso; containing a proviso or condition; conditional; as, a provisory clause.

Provisory (a.) Making temporary provision; provisional.

Provocation (n.) The act of provoking, or causing vexation or, anger.

Provocation (n.) That which provokes, or excites anger; the cause of resentment; as, to give provocation.

Provocation (n.) Incitement; stimulus; as, provocation to mirth.

Provocation (n.) Such prior insult or injury as may be supposed, under the circumstances, to create hot blood, and to excuse an assault made in retort or redress.

Provocation (n.) An appeal to a court. [A Latinism]

Provocative (a.) Serving or tending to provoke, excite, or stimulate; exciting.

Provocative (n.) Anything that is provocative; a stimulant; as, a provocative of appetite.

Provocativeness (n.) Quality of being provocative.

Provocatory (a.) Provocative.

Provokable (a.) That may be provoked.

Provoked (imp. & p. p.) of Provoke

Provoking (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Provoke

Provoke (v. t.) To call forth; to call into being or action; esp., to incense to action, a faculty or passion, as love, hate, or ambition; hence, commonly, to incite, as a person, to action by a challenge, by taunts, or by defiance; to exasperate; to irritate; to offend intolerably; to cause to retaliate.

Provoke (v. i.) To cause provocation or anger.

Provoke (v. i.) To appeal. [A Latinism]

Provokement (n.) The act that which, provokes; one who excites anger or other passion, or incites to action; as, a provoker of sedition.

Provoking (a.) Having the power or quality of exciting resentment; tending to awaken passion or vexation; as, provoking words or treatment.

Provost (n.) A person who is appointed to superintend, or preside over, something; the chief magistrate in some cities and towns; as, the provost of Edinburgh or of Glasgow, answering to the mayor of other cities; the provost of a college, answering to president; the provost or head of certain collegiate churches.

Provost (n.) The keeper of a prison.

Provostship (n.) The office of a provost.

Prow (n.) The fore part of a vessel; the bow; the stem; hence, the vessel itself.

Prow (n.) See Proa.

Prow (superl.) Valiant; brave; gallant; courageous.

Prow (a.) Benefit; profit; good; advantage.

Prowess (a.) Distinguished bravery; valor; especially, military bravery and skill; gallantry; intrepidity; fearlessness.

Prowled (imp. & p. p.) of Prowl

Prowling (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Prowl

Prowl (v. t.) To rove over, through, or about in a stealthy manner; esp., to search in, as for prey or booty.

Prowl (v. t.) To collect by plunder; as, to prowl money.

Prowl (v. i.) To rove or wander stealthily, esp. for prey, as a wild beast; hence, to prey; to plunder.

Prowl (n.) The act of prowling.

Prowler (n.) One that prowls.

Prowling (a.) Accustomed to prowl, or engaged in roving stealthily, as for prey.

Prox (n.) "The ticket or list of candidates at elections, presented to the people for their votes."

Proxene (n.) An officer who had the charge of showing hospitality to those who came from a friendly city or state.

Proxenet (n.) A negotiator; a factor.

Proximad (adv.) Toward a proximal part; on the proximal side of; proximally.

Proximal (a.) Toward or nearest, as to a body, or center of motion of dependence; proximate.

Proximal (a.) Situated near the point of attachment or origin; as, the proximal part of a limb.

Proximal (a.) Of or pertaining to that which is proximal; as, the proximal bones of a limb. Opposed to distal.

Proximally (adv.) On or toward a proximal part; proximad.

Proximate (a.) Nearest; next immediately preceding or following.

Proximately (adv.) In a proximate manner, position, or degree; immediately.

Proxime (a.) Next; immediately preceding or following.

Proximious (a.) Proximate.

Proximity (n.) The quality or state of being next in time, place, causation, influence, etc.; immediate nearness, either in place, blood, or alliance.

Proximo () In the next month after the present; -- often contracted to prox.; as, on the 3d proximo.

Proxies (pl. ) of Proxy

Proxy (n.) The agency for another who acts through the agent; authority to act for another, esp. to vote in a legislative or corporate capacity.

Proxy (n.) The person who is substituted or deputed to act or vote for another.

Proxy (n.) A writing by which one person authorizes another to vote in his stead, as in a corporation meeting.

Proxy (n.) The written appointment of a proctor in suits in the ecclesiastical courts.

Proxy (n.) See Procuration.

Proxy (v. i.) To act or vote by proxy; to do anything by the agency of another.

Proxyship (n.) The office or agency of a proxy.

Pruce (n.) Prussian leather.

Prude (a.) A woman of affected modesty, reserve, or coyness; one who is overscrupulous or sensitive; one who affects extraordinary prudence in conduct and speech.

Prudence (n.) The quality or state of being prudent; wisdom in the way of caution and provision; discretion; carefulness; hence, also, economy; frugality.

Prudency (n.) Prudence.

Prudent (a.) Sagacious in adapting means to ends; circumspect in action, or in determining any line of conduct; practically wise; judicious; careful; discreet; sensible; -- opposed to rash; as, a prudent man; dictated or directed by prudence or wise forethought; evincing prudence; as, prudent behavior.

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