progress
nounverbcommon in dialogue
- United Kingdom//ˈpɹəʊ.ɡɹɛs//
- United States//ˈpɹɑ.ɡɹɛs//
- United States//-ɹəs//
- Canada//ˈpɹoʊ.ɡɹɛs//
- Canada//pɹəˈɡɹɛs//
- Australia//pɹəˈɡɹes//
Movement or advancement through a series of events, or points in time; development through time.
noun
- 1
Movement or advancement through a series of events, or points in time; development through time.
Testing for the new antidote is currently in progress.
- 2
Specifically, advancement to a higher or more developed state; development, growth.
Science has made extraordinary progress in the last fifty years.
You wish for progress? The Ascians have it. They are deafened by it, crazed by the death of Nature till they are ready to accept Erebus and the rest as gods.
Becoming more aware of the progress that scientists have made on behavioral fronts can reduce the risk that other natural scientists will resort to mystical agential accounts when they exceed the limits of their own disciplinary training.
- 3
An official journey made by a monarch or other high personage; a state journey, a circuit.
... Queen Elizabeth in one of her progresses, stopping at Crawley to breakfast, was so delighted with some remarkably fine Hampshire beer which was then presented to her by the Crawley of the day (a handsome gentleman with a trim beard and a good leg), that she forthwith erected Crawley into a borough to send two members to Parliament ...
With the king about to go on progress, the trials and executions were deliberately timed.
- 4
archaicA journey forward; travel.
Now Tim began to be struck with these loitering progresses along the garden boundaries in the gloaming, and wondered what they boded.
- 5
Movement onwards, forwards, or towards a specific objective or direction; advance.
The thick branches overhanging the path made progress difficult.
Etymology
From Middle English progresse, from Old French progres (“a going forward”), from Latin prōgressus (“an advance”), from the participle stem of prōgredī (“to go forward, advance, develop”), from pro- (“forth, before”) + gradi (“to walk, go”). Displaced native Old English forþgang.
verb
- 1
To move, go, or proceed forward; to advance.
Visitors progress through the museum at their own pace.
Scotland needed a victory by eight points to have a realistic chance of progressing to the knock-out stages, and for long periods of a ferocious contest looked as if they might pull it off.
- 2
To develop.
Societies progress unevenly.
- 3
To develop. To improve; to become better or more complete.
- 4
To expedite.
Or […] they came to progress matters in which Dudley had taken a hand, and left defrauded or bound over to the king.
Etymology
From the noun. Lapsed into disuse in the 17th century, except in the US. Considered an Americanism on reintroduction to use in the UK.
Forms
- plural
- progresses
- past tense
- progressed
- past participle
- progressed
- present participle
- progressing
- third person singular
- progresses
progress · Movement or advancement through a series of events, or points in time; development through time.
Progress · A placename A rural municipality of Saskatchewan, Canada.progressive · Favouring or promoting progress; advanced.Progressive · Belonging to or supporting a Progressive Party.