Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

protean

 
(prō'tē-ən, prō-tē'-) pronunciation
adj.
  1. Readily taking on varied shapes, forms, or meanings.
  2. Exhibiting considerable variety or diversity: "He loved to show off his protean talent" (William A. Henry III).

[From PROTEUS.]


Search unanswered questions...
Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

meaning 'able to change form, versatile' (after the ancient mythical figure Proteus), is normally pronounced with the stress on the first syllable, and is spelt with a small initial p.

Previous:protagonist, prostate, prostrate, prospectus
Next:protector, protest, protester

In a discussion of a controversial Supreme Court decision on a matter of eminent domain in New London, Conn., Justice Anthony Kennedy was called "protean" by The Wall Street Journal because he is a nominal conservative who at times votes leftward:

"The Court's four liberals (Justices Stevens, Breyer, Souter and Ginsburg) combined with the protean Anthony Kennedy to rule that local governments have more or less unlimited authority to seize homes and businesses."

Link: Kennedy's Vast Domain

Posted June 26, 2005.

Slightly altered proteins that have become insoluble, probably an early stage of denaturation.


adj

Definition: ever-changing
Antonyms: consistent, constant

adj

Definition: versatile
Antonyms: limited

Obscure Words:

protean

Top


1) of or resembling Proteus in having a varied nature or ability to assume different forms
2) displaying great diversity or variety: versatile

Changing form or assuming different shapes.

Random House Word Menu:

categories related to 'protean'

Top
Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to protean, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Protean.
Translations:

Protean

Top

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - proteusagtig

Nederlands (Dutch)
veranderlijk, flexibel

Français (French)
adj. - changeant

Deutsch (German)
adj. - proteisch

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - πρωτεϊκός, ο ανήκων ή αναφερόμενος στον Πρωτέα, ευμετάβλητος

Italiano (Italian)
versatile

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - protéico, multiforme

Русский (Russian)
изменчивый, разносторонний

Español (Spanish)
adj. - proteico

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - föränderlig, mångsidig, proteusartad

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
变化无常的

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 變化無常的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 변화무쌍한, 다방면의

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 様々に変化する, 変幻自在な, 一人で数役を演じる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) متقلب, يتخذ أشكالا مختلفه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮לובש צורות שונות, מגוון (אמן)‬


 
 
Related topics:
proteanly
multiversant
Proteus (in Greek mythology)

Related answers:
How do you use protean in a sentence? Read answer...
How is DNA used to make protean? Read answer...
Which part of the egg contain protean? Read answer...

Help us answer these:
How do you find protean?
What is protean career?
How are proteans made?

Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

 

Copyrights:

American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
 Fowler's Modern English Usage. Oxford University Press. © 1999, 2004 All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Word Overheard by Answers.com. © 1999-present by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Oxford Food & Nutrition Dictionary. A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2005 by A. E. Bender and D. A. Bender. All rights reserved.  Read more
Roget's Thesaurus. Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 byHoughton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Antonyms by Answers.com. © 1999-present by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Obscure Words. © 2008 by Michael A. Fischer http://home.comcast.net/~wwftd Read more
Saunders Veterinary Dictionary. Saunders Comprehensive Veterinary Dictionary 3rd Edition. Copyright © 2007 by D.C. Blood, V.P. Studdert and C.C. Gay, Elsevier. All rights reserved.  Read more
Random House Word Menu. © 2010 Write Brothers Inc. Word Menu is a registered trademark of the Estate of Stephen Glazier. Write Brothers Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
 Rhymes. Oxford University Press. © 2006, 2007 All rights reserved.  Read more
Bradford's Crossword Solver's Dictionary. Collins Bradford's Crossword Solver's Dictionary © Anne Bradford, 1986, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2008 HarperCollins Publishers All rights reserved.  Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more

Follow us
Facebook Twitter
YouTube

Mentioned in

» More» More