propound

[ pruh-pound ]

verb (used with object)

1. to put forward or offer for consideration, acceptance, or adoption; set forth; propose:

   to propound a theory.

propound

/ prəˈpaʊnd /

verb

1. to suggest or put forward for consideration
2. English law
   1. to produce (a will or similar instrument) to the proper court or authority in order for its validity to be established
   2. (of an executor) to bring (an action to obtain probate) in solemn form

Derived Forms

• proˈpounder, noun

Other Words From

• pro·pounder noun
• unpro·pounded adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of propound¹

1545–55; later variant of Middle English propone ( propone ) < Latin prōpōnere to set forth, equivalent to prō- pro- ¹ + pōnere to put, place, set. See compound ¹, expound

Word History and Origins

Origin of propound¹

C16 propone, from Latin prōpōnere to set forth, from pro- ¹+ pōnere to place

Example Sentences

So does Noam Chomsky on the far left, propounding a few historical distortions along the way.

From Salon

"And no matter what you may think, Mr. Kennedy. And I revere your name. You're not here to propound your case for censorship," Connolly said.

From Salon

While he propounded a number of groundbreaking if sometimes controversial theories, Professor Lucas was best known for his hypothesis of “rational expectations,” advanced in the early 1970s in a critique of macroeconomics.

From New York Times

And it ends with one of them stepping on a butterfly and changing the course of history — 20 years before the chaos theoretician Edward Norton Lorenz propounded the “butterfly effect.”

From Los Angeles Times

Global Britain, as propounded by Mr. Johnson, was meant to evoke a Britain, unshackled from Brussels, that could be agile and opportunistic, a lightly regulated, free-trading powerhouse.

From New York Times

Related Words

• broach
• proffer
• set forth