Meaning
1 senses(UK, obsolete, slang)To be delivered to a provost marshal for punishment.
Around the time of the Rebellions of 1837 and the First Anglo-Afghan War, British servicemen spoke of being provosted.
Examples
4 sentencesIs a provost like a mayor?
Tom emailed the provost with his complaint.
Tom is the provost of Harvard University.
In some Scottish cities, the equivalent of a mayor is called a provost.
Origin
From Middle English, from late Old English prōfost, prāfost, from Late Latin prōpositus, vFrom Middle English, from late Old English prōfost, prāfost, from Late Latin prōpositus, variant of Latin praepositus (“[one] placed in command”). In some senses, via Anglo-Norman provolt; via Anglo-Norman and Old French provost (modern French prévôt). As a Central European ecclesiastical office, via German Propst, Danish provst, etc.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
provosts, provosting, provosted, provostedLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.