Emily Dickinson Lexicon

progress (-'), n. [ME < Fr. < L. prō-, forward + grad-ī, step, walk, go.] (webplay: proportion, sun, time).

1. Advance; onward motion; forward movement; [fig.] journey; trek; opportunity for success; laborious process of overcoming a difficult trial.
2. Growth; development; maturation; increase; propagation.
3. Change; improvement; enhancement; natural course of events; necessary alteration of things due to the lapse of time.
4. Phrase. “In progress”: in motion; on edge; [fig.] alert; tense; in a state of nervous tension.