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protrarre

to prolong

verb proh-TRAHR-reh Rare

Origin: From Latin protrahere (to draw forward), from pro- (forward) + trahere (to draw).

Also means

to drag out

Usage Note

Protrarre is an irregular verb belonging to the trarre family: it conjugates like trarre (protraggo, protrai, protrae…; past participle protratto). It is used in formal contexts to mean prolonging something beyond its expected end: la riunione si è protratta per ore (the meeting dragged on for hours). The reflexive protrarsi is very common.

Examples

"La conferenza si è protratta fino a tardi."

Natural Translation

The conference dragged on until late.

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