prolate

P3R1O1L1A1T1E1
/ˈpɹəʊ.leɪt//pɹəʊˈleɪt/

adjective

Elongated at the poles.

“A cigar is a prolate spheroid.”

Similar
watermelon-shapedcucumber-shapedegg-shapedellipticellipticalovaloval-shapedovate
Opposite
oblate
OriginLatin prolatum →
UncommonScrabble 9
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

adjectiveprolate (comparative more prolate, superlative most prolate)

comparative more prolate · superlative most prolate

  1. Elongated at the poles.

    A cigar is a prolate spheroid.

verbprolate (third-person singular simple present prolates, present participle prolating, simple past and past participle prolated)

present singular third person prolates · participle present prolating · participle past prolated · past prolated

  1. obsoletetransitiveTo utter; to pronounce.

    Prolate it right.

    1629 (first performance), B[en] Jonson, The New Inne. Or, The Light Heart. […], London: […] Thomas Harper, for Thomas Alchorne, […], published 1631, →OCLC, (please specify the page), (please specify the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals)

Synonyms & antonyms

Opposite
oblate

adjectivehaving the polar diameter greater than the equatorial diameter

Similar
watermelon-shapedcucumber-shaped
Opposite
oblate

adjectiverounded like an egg

Similar
egg-shapedellipticellipticalovaloval-shapedovateoviformovoidrounded
Also see
egg-shapedellipticellipticalovaloval-shapedovateoviformovoid

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Latinprolatum
  2. Englishprolate

From Latin prolatum, past participle of proferre (“to extend, lengthen”).

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian удължен
  • удължен (udălžen)Elongated at the poles
French oblong
  • oblongElongated at the poles

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with prolate

datestategreatratecreateupdateweightlatecertificatewaiteightstraightplatechocolatedebatehategatedonateevaluatelocatekatealternatetranslatemate
All rhymes →

Anagrams

LaportePortelaPlateroePortalPoltera
Cite this entry
APA

prolate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prolate

MLA

“prolate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prolate. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “prolate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prolate.

Source: prolate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.