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Salient - 5 dictionary results

sa⋅li⋅ent

  [sey-lee-uhnt, seyl-yuhnt]
Use Salient in a Sentence
–adjective
1. prominent or conspicuous: salient traits.
2. projecting or pointing outward: a salient angle.
3. leaping or jumping: a salient animal.
4. Heraldry. (of a beast) represented as leaping: a lion salient.
–noun
5. a salient angle or part, as the central outward-projecting angle of a bastion or an outward projection in a battle line.
6. Physical Geography. a landform that extends out beyond its surroundings, as a spur projecting from the side of a mountain. Compare reentrant (def. 4).
Origin:
1555–65; < L salient- (s. of saliēns, prp. of salīre to spring, jump), equiv. to sali- verb s. + -ent- -ent

Related forms:
sa⋅li⋅ent⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. important; striking, remarkable.

Antonyms:
1. inconspicuous, unimportant.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Salient
sa·li·ent   (sā'lē-ənt, sāl'yənt)   
adj.  
  1. Projecting or jutting beyond a line or surface; protruding.
  2. Strikingly conspicuous; prominent. See Synonyms at noticeable.
  3. Springing; jumping: salient tree toads.
n.  
  1. A military position that projects into the position of the enemy.
  2. A projecting angle or part.

[Latin saliēns, salient-, present participle of salīre, to leap; see sel- in Indo-European roots.]
sa'li·ent·ly adv.
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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Salient

Sa"li*ent\, a. [L. saliens, -entis, p. pr. of salire to leap; cf. F. saillant. See Sally, n. & v. i..]

1. Moving by leaps or springs; leaping; bounding; jumping. "Frogs and salient animals." --Sir T. Browne.

2. Shooting out or up; springing; projecting.

He had in himself a salient, living spring of generous and manly action. --Burke.

3. Hence, figuratively, forcing itself on the attention; prominent; conspicuous; noticeable.

He [Grenville] had neither salient traits, nor general comprehensiveness of mind. --Bancroft.

4. (Math. & Fort.) Projecting outwardly; as, a salient angle; -- opposed to re["e]ntering. See Illust. of Bastion.

5. (Her.) Represented in a leaping position; as, a lion salient.

Salient angle. See Salient, a., 4.

Salient polygon (Geom.), a polygon all of whose angles are salient.

Salient polyhedron (Geom.), a polyhedron all of whose solid angles are salient.

Salient

Sa"li*ent\, a. (Fort.) A salient angle or part; a projection.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : Salient
Spanish: destacado; principal,
German: springend,
Japanese: 主な
More Translations »

salient 
1562, "leaping," a heraldic term, from L. salientem (nom. saliens), prp. of salire "to leap," from PIE base *sel- "to jump" (cf. Gk. hallesthai "to leap," M.Ir. saltraim "I trample," and probably Skt. ucchalati "rises quickly"). The meaning "pointing outward" (preserved in military usage) is from 1687; that of "prominent, striking" first recorded 1840, from salient point (1672), which refers to the heart of an embryo, which seems to leap, and translates L. punctum saliens, going back to Aristotle's writings. Hence, the "starting point" of anything.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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