Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Projecting outward or upward from a line or surface; protuberant.
  • adjective Immediately noticeable; conspicuous: synonym: noticeable.
  • adjective Widely known; eminent.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Standing out beyond the line or surface of something; jutting; protuberant; in high relief: as, a prominent figure on a vase.
  • In entomology: Raised above the general surface: as, prominent eyes.
  • Projecting horizontally: as, prominent angles of the prothorax.
  • Standing out so as to be easily seen; most visible or striking to the eye; conspicuous: as, the figure of a man is prominent in the picture.
  • Standing out from among the multitude; distinguished above others: as, a prominent citizen.
  • Eminent, leading.
  • noun A promontory.
  • noun One of certain bombycid moths; a tooth-back or pebble.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Standing out, or projecting, beyond the line surface of something; jutting; protuberant; in high relief.
  • adjective Hence; Distinctly manifest; likely to attract attention from its size or position; conspicuous
  • adjective Eminent; distinguished above others.
  • adjective (Zoöl.) any moth of the family Notodontidæ; a notodontian; -- so called because the larva has a hump or prominence on its back. Several of the species are injurious to fruit trees.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Standing out, or projecting; jutting; protuberant.
  • adjective Likely to attract attention from its size or position; conspicuous.
  • adjective Eminent; distinguished above others.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective having a quality that thrusts itself into attention
  • adjective conspicuous in position or importance

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Latin prōminēns, prōminent-, present participle of prōminēre, to jut out : prō-, forth; see pro– + -minēre, to jut, threaten; see men- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin prōminēns, present active participle of prōmineō (" jut out, to project"), from prō ("before, forward") + mineō (in compounds, "jut, project").

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