prostrate

/ˌprɑˈstreɪt/

/ˈprɒstreɪt/

Other forms: prostrated; prostrating; prostrates

The verb prostrate means to lie face-downward in submission or despair. More generally, it means to make helpless or defenseless. Illness, injury, grief, despair — any of these things can prostrate someone.

The word prostrate traces back to the Latin word prostratus, meaning “thrown down.” If you are prostrate, you feel thrown down and laid flat. It can describe lying on the ground in a helpless position, or it can be used to describe someone who has been overcome or made unable to function, such as someone who is prostrated by grief or illness.

Definitions of prostrate

1. adjective

   stretched out and lying at full length along the ground
   synonyms: flat, repent

   unerect

   not upright in position or posture
2. adjective

   lying face downward
   synonyms: prone

   unerect

   not upright in position or posture
3. verb

   get into a prostrate position, as in submission
   synonyms: bow down

   type of:

   lie, lie down

   assume a reclining position
4. verb

   throw down flat, as on the ground
   “She prostrated herself with frustration”

   type of:

   throw

   propel through the air
5. verb

   render helpless or defenseless
   “They prostrated the enemy”

   type of:

   alter, change, modify

   cause to change; make different; cause a transformation