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Definition of Protestants - 2 dictionary results

Prot⋅es⋅tant

  [prot-uh-stuhnt or, for 4, 6, pruh-tes-tuhnt]
Use Protestants in a Sentence
–noun
1. any Western Christian who is not an adherent of a Catholic, Anglican, or Eastern Church.
2. an adherent of any of those Christian bodies that separated from the Church of Rome during the Reformation, or of any group descended from them.
3. (originally) any of the German princes who protested against the decision of the Diet of Speyer in 1529, which had denounced the Reformation.
4. (lowercase) a person who protests.
–adjective
5. belonging or pertaining to Protestants or their religion.
6. (lowercase) protesting.
Origin:
1530–40; < G or F, for L prōtestantēs, pl. of prp. of prōtestārī to bear public witness. See protest, -ant
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Prot·es·tant   (prŏt'ĭ-stənt)   
n.  
  1. A member of a Western Christian church whose faith and practice are founded on the principles of the Reformation, especially in the acceptance of the Bible as the sole source of revelation, in justification by faith alone, and in the universal priesthood of all the believers.
  2. A member of a Western Christian church adhering to the theologies of Luther, Calvin, or Zwingli.
  3. One of the German princes and cities that supported the doctrines of Luther and protested against the decision of the second Diet of Speyer (1529) to enforce the Edict of Worms (1521) and deny toleration to Lutherans.
  4. protestant also (prə-těs'tənt) One who makes a declaration or avowal.
adj.  Of or relating to Protestants or Protestantism.

[French, from German, from Latin prōtestāns, prōtestant-, present participle of prōtestārī, to protest; see protest.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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