Proto- - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

proto-

a combining form meaning “first,” “foremost,” “earliest form of,” used in the formation of compound words (protomartyr; protolithic; protoplasm), specialized in chemical terminology to denote the first of a series of compounds, or the one containing the minimum amount of an element.

Also, especially before a vowel, prot-.

[Origin: < Gk, comb. form repr. prôtos first, superl. formed from pró; see pro-²

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Proto-

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

proto- or prot-
pref.

First in time; earliest: protolithic.
First formed; primitive; original: protohuman.
Proto- Being a form of a language that is the ancestor of a language or group of related languages: Proto-Germanic.
Having the least amount of a specified element or radical: protoporphyrin.

[Greek prōto-, from prōtos; see per¹ in Indo-European roots.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
proto-

comb. form meaning "first," from Gk. proto-, comb. form of protos "first," superlative of pro "before."

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Proto-

Pro"to-\ [Gr. prw^tos first, a superl. fr. pro` before. See Pro-.]

1. A combining form prefix signifying first, primary, primordial; as, protomartyr, the first martyr; protomorphic, primitive in form; protoplast, a primordial organism; prototype, protozoan.

2. (Chem.) (a) Denoting the first or lowest of a series, or the one having the smallest amount of the element to the name of which it is prefixed; as protoxide, protochloride, etc. (b) Sometimes used as equivalent to mono-, as indicating that the compound has but one atom of the element to the name of which it is prefixed. Also used adjectively.

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