Reading Theme:
Prone: Meaning, Examples, and Common Usage (2 meaning)
Meaning 1：tending to suffer (prone)
prone
/proʊn/
adj.
Likely to experience something bad, like falling sick or making mistakes.
tending to suffer
➕
/ˈtɛndɪŋ tə ˈsʌfər/
adj.
Having a natural tendency or susceptibility to something undesirable, such as illness or errors.
📘 Details & Usage
📖 Root Explanation
From Latin 'pronus' (bent forward), from 'pro-' (forward).
💡 Mnemonic
Imagine a 'pro' athlete lying face down ('prone') after a race, vulnerable to exhaustion.
📖 Example
Children are more prone to catching colds in the winter, so make sure they dress warmly.
Children are more prone to catching colds in the winter, so make sure they dress warmly.
🔗 Collocations
be prone to – to have a tendency to (usually something negative)
accident-prone – more likely to have accidents than others
error-prone – likely to make errors
🔄 Synonyms
susceptible (adj.) – likely to be influenced or harmed by something
liable (adj.) – likely to experience something undesirable
inclined (adj.) – tending to do something; having a certain tendency
🚫 Antonyms
resistant (adj.) – not affected by something; immune
immune (adj.) – protected from a disease or something harmful
invulnerable (adj.) – not able to be harmed or affected
🌱 Derivatives
proneness (n.) – the state of being prone to something
📖 Cultural Story
Derived from Latin 'pronus' meaning 'bent forward.' The physical posture sense directly reflects leaning forward, while the tendency sense developed metaphorically from leaning toward something.
Meaning 2：lying face down (prone)
prone
/proʊn/
adj.
Lying flat with your face and stomach down.
lying face down
➕
/ˈlaɪɪŋ feɪs daʊn/
adj.
In a position where the front of the body is facing downward, typically used in yoga, military exercises, or medical contexts.
📘 Details & Usage
📖 Example
During the yoga class, the instructor asked us to lie prone on our mats to stretch our backs.
During the yoga class, the instructor asked us to lie prone on our mats to stretch our backs.
🔗 Collocations
lie prone – to lie flat with the face downward
prone position – a body position lying face down
prone on the floor – lying face down on the floor
🔄 Synonyms
prostrate (adj.) – lying stretched out on the ground with face downward
face-down (adj./adv.) – with the face facing downward
procumbent (adj.) – lying with the body facing downwards
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