prowess

Noun

prowess (countable and uncountable, plural prowesses)

1. (uncountable) Skillfulness or extraordinary ability in a particular area of expertise; dexterity, mastery, or proficiency.
   • When in liquor he would make foolish wagers. On one of these too frequent occasions he was boasting of his prowess as a pedestrian and athlete, and the outcome was a match against nature. For a stake of one sovereign he undertook to run all the way to Coventry and back, a distance of something more...1888 October 14, Ambrose Bierce, “An Unfinished Race”, in The San Francisco Examiner, →OCLC; republished in Can Such Things Be?, Washington, D.C.: The Neale Publishing Company, 1903, →OCLC, page 313
   • There is such a sense of inferiority sometimes when it comes to facing Germany, with all their World Cups, their penalty prowess and easy sophistication, it might come as a surprise to learn that, in head-to-head encounters, England actually match their opponents.2017 November 10, Daniel Taylor, “Youthful England earn draw with Germany but Lingard rues late miss”, in The Guardian, London, archived from the original on 28 Mar 2018

   Synonyms:

   mastery, expertise, competence

   Antonyms:

   incompetence, ineptitude

2. (uncountable) Distinguished bravery or courage, especially in battle; heroism.
   • That libertie Poets of late in their invectives have exceeded: they have borne their ſword up where it is not lawfull for a poynado, that is but the page of proweſſe, to intermeddle.1592, Tho[mas] Nashe, “A Dash through the Dudgen Sonnet against Greene”, in Strange Newes, of the Intercepting Certaine Letters and a Convoy of Verses, […], London: […] Iohn Danter, […], →OCLC...
   • […] But, wroth because this man in full assembly, / Came and reviled thee, thou wouldst shew thy prowess, / The prowess that attends thee, that henceforth / Not e'er a man might think to scorn thy prowess, […]1863, Homer, translated by T[homas] S[tarling] Norgate, The Odyssey; or, The Ten Years’ Wandering of Odusseus, after the Ten Years’ Siege of Troy. Reproduced in Dramatic Blank Verse, London: Williams...

   Synonyms:

   valor

   Antonyms:

   cowardice

3. An act of adroitness or dexterity.
   • I recollect hearing […] of his [Sir William Hamilton's] simple, independent, meditative habits, ruggedly athletic modes of exercise, fondness for his big dog, etc. etc.: […] I did not witness, much less share in, any of the swimming or other athletic prowesses.1869 July, “Art. VI.—Memoir of Sir William Hamilton, Bart., Professor of Logic and Metaphysics in the University of Edinburgh. By John Veitch, M.A., Professor of Logic and Rhetoric in the University...
   • As the Middle Ages drew to a close and the Renaissance rose like a new sun, knowledge of philosophy and the sciences became objects of interest to a nobility that had once held only skill in battle as a prowess worth attaining.2007, Christopher Hodapp, “From Darkness to Light”, in Richard Harris, editor, Solomon’s Builders: Freemasons, Founding Fathers and the Secrets of Washington, D.C., Berkeley, Calif.: Ulysses Press...
4. An act of distinguished bravery or courage; a heroic deed.
   • Thenne the batails approuched and ſhoue and ſhowted on bothe ſydes / many men ouerthrowen / hurte / & ſlayn and grete valyaunces / proweſſes and appertyces of werre were that day ſhewed […]1470–1485 (date produced), Thomas Malory, “Capitulum viij”, in [Le Morte Darthur], book V, [London: […] by William Caxton], published 31 July 1485, →OCLC, leaf 87, recto; republished as H[einrich]...
   • If it is deemed of so much importance, why has no attention been paid to the effects of general friendship, such as certain military prowesses, in which you see a portion of a regiment sacrifice itself in support of another portion?1851, Charles Fourier, “Ulterlogue”, in Hugh Doherty, transl., The Passions of the Human Soul, and Their Influence on Society and Civilization. […] In Two Volumes, volume II, London: Hippolyte...

   Synonyms:

   exploit