1 N‑COUNT A prohibition is a law or rule forbidding something. □ [+ on ] …a prohibition on discrimination. □ [+ against ] …prohibitions against feeding birds at the airport.
2 → see also prohibit
Pro|hi|bi|tion N‑UNCOUNT In the United States, Prohibition was the law that prevented the manufacture, sale, and transporting of alcoholic drinks between 1919 and 1933. Prohibition also refers to the period when this law existed.
pro|hibi|tive /prəh I b I t I v, [AM ] proʊ-/ ADJ If the cost of something is prohibitive , it is so high that many people cannot afford it. [FORMAL ] □ The cost of private treatment can be prohibitive. ● pro|hibi|tive|ly ADV [ADV adj] □ Meat and butter were prohibitively expensive.
proj|ect ◆◆◇ (projects , projecting , projected ) The noun is pronounced /prɒ dʒekt/. The verb is pronounced /prədʒe kt/ and is hyphenated pro|ject. 1 N‑COUNT A project is a task that requires a lot of time and effort. □ Money will also go into local development projects in Vietnam. □ Besides film and record projects, I have continued to work in the theater.
2 N‑COUNT A project is a detailed study of a subject by a pupil or student. □ Students complete projects for a personal tutor, working at home at their own pace.
3 VERB If something is projected , it is planned or expected. □ [be V -ed to-inf] This sector is projected to double in size over the next 12 months. □ [V n] The government had been projecting a 5% consumer price increase for the entire year. □ [V -ed] …a projected deficit of $1.5 million.
4 VERB If you project someone or something in a particular way, you try to make people see them in that way. If you project a particular feeling or quality, you show it in your behaviour. □ [V n] Bradley projects a natural warmth and sincerity. □ [V pron-refl + as ] He just hasn't been able to project himself as the strong leader. □ [V n + as ] His first job will be to project Glasgow as a friendly city. □ [V -ed] The initial image projected was of a caring, effective president.
5 VERB If you project feelings or ideas on to other people, you imagine that they have the same ideas or feelings as you. □ [V n + on/onto/upon ] He projects his own thoughts and ideas onto her.
6 VERB If you project a film or picture onto a screen or wall, you make it appear there. □ [V n] The team tried projecting the maps with two different projectors onto the same screen.
7 VERB If something projects , it sticks out above or beyond a surface or edge. [FORMAL ] □ [V prep/adv] …the remains of a war-time defence which projected out from the shore. □ [V -ing] …a piece of projecting metal.
8 → see also housing project SYNONYMS project NOUN 1
task: She used the day to catch up with administrative tasks.
scheme: …schemes to help combat unemployment.
plan: …a detailed plan of action for restructuring the group.
venture: …his latest writing venture.
pro|jec|tile /prədʒe kta I l, [AM ] -t ə l/ (projectiles ) N‑COUNT A projectile is an object that is fired from a gun or other weapon. [FORMAL ]
pro|jec|tion /prədʒe kʃ ə n/ (projections )
1 N‑COUNT A projection is an estimate of a future amount. □ [+ of ] …the company's projection of 11 million visitors for the first year. □ …sales projections.
2 N‑UNCOUNT [usu N n] The projection of a film or picture is the act of projecting it onto a screen or wall.
pro|jec|tion|ist /prədʒe kʃən I st/ (projectionists ) N‑COUNT A projectionist is someone whose job is to work a projector at a cinema.
pro j|ect ma n|ag|er (project managers ) N‑COUNT A project manager is someone who plans a project and organizes the work of all the people involved in it. □ She works as a project manager for an insurance company.
pro|jec|tor /prədʒe ktə r / (projectors )
1 N‑COUNT A projector is a machine that projects images onto a screen or wall. □ The chain is introducing digital projectors and broadcasts of live sports.
2 → see also overhead projector
pro|lapse /proʊ læps, [AM ] proʊlæ ps/ (prolapses , prolapsing , prolapsed ) The verb is also pronounced /prəlæ ps/. 1 N‑VAR A prolapse is when one of the organs in the body moves down from its normal position. [MEDICAL ]
2 VERB If an organ in someone's body prolapses , it moves down from its normal position. [MEDICAL ] □ [V ] Sometimes the original abortion was done so badly that the uterus prolapsed.
prole /proʊ l/ (proles ) N‑COUNT A prole is someone in a low social class. [mainly BRIT , INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ] □ We had proles working alongside university types as equals.
pro|letar|ian /proʊ l I teə riən/ (proletarians )
1 ADJ Proletarian means relating to the proletariat. □ …a proletarian revolution.
2 N‑COUNT A proletarian is a member of the proletariat.
pro|letari|at /proʊ l I teə riæt/ N‑SING [with sing or pl verb] The proletariat is a term used to refer to workers without high status, especially industrial workers. □ …a struggle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.
pro -li fe ADJ [usu ADJ n] Someone who is pro-life thinks that women do not have a right to choose whether or not to give birth to a child they have conceived, and that abortion is wrong in most or all circumstances. □ …the pro-life movement.