prompt (mpas m), prompte

& s. [French prompt, from Lat. prompt us =brought to light, at hand, ready; prop. pa. par. of promo =to take or bring forward: pro =forward, and emo =to take; Sp. & Ital. pronto.] A. As adjective : 1. Ready and quick to act as occasion demands; sharp. 2. Given, done, or performed readily and without delay; quick, ready; characterized by, or done with, alacity. "That exact order and prompt obedience in which the strength of regular armies consists."-Macaulay: Hist. Eng . , ch. xiii. 3. Acting quickly and readily; ready and willing. "A matchle horse, though something old Prompt to his paces." Scott: Marmion, ii. 16. 4. Hasty, forward, petulant. *5. Inclined, disposed. "To which the Grecians are most prompt and preg. nant." Shakesp.: Troilus and Cre ida, iv. 4. *6. Unobstructed, open. B. As substantive: Comm.: (See extract.) "A prompt is an agreement between a shipper or importer and a merchant, in which the former engages to sell certain specified goods at a given price, and the latter to take them up and pay for them at a specified date."Bithell: Counting-house Dictionary.