prologue means A speech or section used as an introduction, especially to a play or novel. It carries an Arena rating of 1563, earned across 4 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, prologue ranks #1,085 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #3,325 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #3,767 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words, #3,839 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words.
prologue is pronounced /ˈpɹəʊlɒɡ/.
Why “prologue” is a great word
A speech or section that serves as an introduction, especially to a play or novel. From Middle English prologue, prologe, from Old French prologue, from Latin prologus, from Ancient Greek πρόλογος (prólogos), from πρό (pro, "before") + λόγος (logos, "speech, word"). Unlike a preface, which is the author's direct address from outside the tale, or an epilogue, which offers a final glance back from beyond the story's end, a prologue is the threshold of the fictional world itself. It is the dimming of the house lights, the lone figure stepping forward to quiet the crowd; the ancient scroll unfurled before the battle begins; the quiet page before Chapter One, heavy with promised rain. All beginnings contain their own end, and the prologue is the breath taken before the plunge.
Etymology
From Middle English prologue, prologe, from Old French prologue, from Latin prologus, from Ancient Greek πρόλογος (prólogos). Equivalent to pro- + -logue.
noun
- A speech or section used as an introduction, especially to a play or novel.
- One who delivers a prologue.e.g.“And hither am I come, / A Prologue arm’d, but not in confidence / Of Authors pen, or Actors voyce;” — c. 1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida. The Prologue.”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Ia
- A component of a computer program that prepares the computer to execute a routine.
- An individual time trial before a stage race, used to determine which rider wears the leader's jersey on the first stage.
- A liturgical book containing daily readings, including hagiography.
verb
- To introduce with a formal preface, or prologue.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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