Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “prominent” come from?

Prominent comes from French prominent, from Latin prominens, the present participle of promineo meaning "to jut forward," from pro- "forward" and a root meaning "to grow or swell."

prominent (English): standing out, or projecting; jutting;...

Definitions

  1. standing out, or projecting; jutting;...

Ancestry of “prominent”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchprominent—
2Latinprōminēns—
3Latinprōmineō—
4Latinprō-—
5Proto-Italic*pro-—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
7Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
8Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed

Words derived from “prominent”

  • prominently
  • overprominent
  • ultra-prominent
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →