different between pray vs prat

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English preien, from Anglo-Norman preier, from Old French preier, proier, (French prier), from Late Latin *prec?re, from Latin prec?r?, present active infinitive of precor, from prex, precis (“a prayer, a request”), from Proto-Indo-European *pre?- (“to ask, woo”). Cognate via Indo-European of Old English frignan, fricgan, German fragen, Dutch vragen. Confer deprecate, imprecate, precarious.

Pronunciation

• enPR: pr?, IPA^(key): /p?e?/
• Rhymes: -e?
• Homophone: prey

Verb

pray (third-person singular simple present prays, present participle praying, simple past and past participle prayed)

1. (religion) To direct words, thoughts, or one's attention to God or any higher being, for the sake of adoration, thanks, petition for help, etc.
2. To humbly beg a person for aid or their time.
3. (obsolete) To ask earnestly for; to seek to obtain by supplication; to entreat for.
4. To wish or hope strongly for a particular outcome.

5. (obsolete) To implore, to entreat, to request.

Derived terms

• prayer
• pray in aid
• pray to the porcelain god
• prithee

Related terms

• precarious

Translations

Etymology 2

Ellipsis of I pray you, I pray thee, whence also prithee.

Adverb

pray (not comparable)

1. (archaic or formal) Please; used to make a polite request
   • 1816, Jane Austen, Emma, Volume 1 Chapter 8

     "Pray, Mr. Knightley," said Emma, who had been smiling to herself through a great part of this speech, "how do you know that Mr. Martin did not speak yesterday?"

   • 1841, Charles Dickens, The Old Curiosity Shop, Chapter 10

     Pray don’t ask me why, pray don’t be sorry, pray don’t be vexed with me!

   • 1845, Frederick Marryat, The Mission, Chapter XXI

     Well, Major, pray tell us your adventures, for you have frightened us dreadfully.

   • 1892, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb

     Thank you. I am sorry to have interrupted you. Pray continue your most interesting statement.

2. Alternative form of pray tell (“I ask you (insincerely)”)
   • 2013, Martina Hyde, Is the pope Catholic? (in The Guardian, 20 September 2013)[1]

     He is a South American, so perhaps revolutionary spirit courses through Francis's veins. But what, pray, does the Catholic church want with doubt?

Middle English

Verb

pray

1. Alternative form of preie

English

Alternative forms

• pratt

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /p?at/

• Rhymes: -æt

Etymology 1

From Middle English prat, from Old English præt, prætt (“trick, prank, craft, art, wile”), from Proto-Germanic *prattuz (“boastful talk, deceit”), from Proto-Indo-European *brodno- (“to wander about”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian prat, Dutch pret (“fun, pleasure, gaity”), obsolete Dutch prat (“cunning, strategem, scheme, a prideful display, arrogance”), Low German prot, Norwegian prette (“trick”), Icelandic prettur (“a trick”). Related to pretty.

Noun

prat (plural prats)

1. (now Scotland) A cunning or mischievous trick; a prank, a joke. [from 10th c.]

Related terms

• pretty

Translations

Adjective

prat (comparative more prat, superlative most prat)

1. (obsolete) Cunning, astute. [13th-17th c.]

Etymology 2

Origin unknown. Perhaps a specialised note of Etymology 1 (see above).

Noun

prat (plural prats)

1. (slang) A buttock, or the buttocks; a person's bottom. [from 16th c.]
   • Thomas Dekker, 1608, The Canters Dictionarie in The Belman of London (second part Lanthorne and Candlelight)

     Pratt, a Buttock.

   • 1952, Leonard Bishop, Down All Your Streets (page 218)

     Burt shook his head, wanting to tell Mac what a pain in the prat he was when he went on a take, but instead, repeated his instruction, keeping his voice at a whisper, moving his fingertips along the table […]

   • 1982, TC Boyle, Water Music, Penguin 2006, p. 5:

     Mungo didn't like their attitude. Nor did he like exposing his prat in mixed company.

2. (Britain, slang) A fool. [from 20th c.]
3. (slang) The female genitals.
   • 1967 (sourced to 1942), William A. Schwartz, The Limerick: 1700 Examples with Notes, Variants and Examples Vol 1, Greenleaf Classics 1967, p. 124:

     "She's a far better piece
     Than the Viceroy's niece,
     Who has also more fur on her prat."

   • 1984 John Murray, ed, Panurge, Vol 1–3, p. 39:

     "...they would kidnap a girl and take her back to their camp where they would pull down her knickers, hoping to find hairs on her prat."

   • 2005 Sherrie Seibert Goff, The Arms of Quirinus, iUniverse 2005, p. 135:

     "My prat was sore from the unfamiliar activities of the night before, but my virgin bleeding had ceased, and we rode most of the day in that unworldly haze that comes with lack of sleep."

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:fool
• See also Thesaurus:buttocks

Derived terms

• pratfall
• prat about
• prattery (rare)
• prattish (rare)

Translations

References

• pratt, in Sex-Lexis.com by Farlex.

Anagrams

• TRAP, part, part., patr-, rapt, rtPA, tarp, trap

Catalan

Etymology

From Latin pr?tum, attested from the 14th century.

Pronunciation

• (Balearic, Central, Valencian) IPA^(key): /?p?at/
• Rhymes: -at

Noun

prat m (plural prats)

1. meadow

Derived terms

• comí de prat
• praderia

References

Further reading

• “prat” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “prat” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “prat” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Dutch

Etymology

Germanic, cognate with praten (“to talk”), pret (“fun”) and English prat (“trick, prank”).

Pronunciation

Adjective

prat (comparative pratter, superlative pratst)

1. (used with op) focused, bent, fixated
2. (obsolete) proud, haughty, arrogant

Inflection

Derived terms

• pratachtig
• pratheid

Noun

prat f (plural pratten, diminutive pratje n)

1. A pride, arrogance
2. the act of pouting or sulking

Derived terms

• pratsch
• prattig

Anagrams

• trap

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [prat]

Verb

prat

1. supine of pra?

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From Middle Low German or Low German.

Noun

prat m (definite singular praten, indefinite plural prater, definite plural pratene)
prat n (definite singular pratet, indefinite plural prat, definite plural prata or pratene)

1. chat, talk

Derived terms

• nettprat

Etymology 2

Verb

prat

1. imperative of prate

References

• “prat” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Middle Low German or Low German

Noun

prat m (definite singular praten, indefinite plural pratar, definite plural pratane)
prat n (definite singular pratet, indefinite plural prat, definite plural prata)

1. chat, talk

Derived terms

• nettprat

References

• “prat” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Occitan

Etymology

From Old Occitan [Term?], from Latin pr?tum. Cognate with Catalan prat, Spanish prado, French pré, Italian prato.

Pronunciation

• (Languedoc) IPA^(key): /p?at/

Noun

prat m (plural prats)

1. meadow

Derived terms

• safran dels prats
• apradar
• apradir
• pradariá
• pradèl
• pradelet
• pradelon
• pradièra

Romanian

Etymology

From Italian prato (“meadow”), from Latin pr?tum. Most likely borrowed in 19th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /prat/
• Rhymes: -at

Noun

prat n (plural praturi)

1. (regional) hayfield
2. (regional, rare) meadow

Declension

Synonyms

• (hayfield): fânea??, fâna?, cositur?, ceair
• (meadow): paji?te, livad?

Swedish

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *prattuz. Compare Dutch praat and English prate.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pr??t/

Noun

prat n

1. Speech, talk

Related terms

• prata (verb)
• pratminus

See also

• konversation c

Anagrams

• part, part.