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prominent

American  
[prom-uh-nuhnt] / ˈprɒm ə nənt /

adjective

  1. standing out so as to be seen easily; particularly noticeable; conspicuous.

    Her eyes are her most prominent feature.
    Antonyms:
    inconspicuous, unobtrusive

  2. standing out beyond the adjacent surface or line; projecting.

    Synonyms:
    protuberant, obvious

  3. leading, important, or well-known.

    a prominent citizen.
    Synonyms:
    distinguished, renowned, famed, famous, celebrated, eminent
    Antonyms:
    unknown, obscure
prominent British  
/ ˈprɒmɪnənt /

adjective

  1. jutting or projecting outwards

  2. standing out from its surroundings; noticeable

  3. widely known; eminent

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • nonprominent adjective
  • overprominent adjective
  • prominently adverb
  • prominentness noun

Etymology

Origin of prominent

First recorded in 1535–45; from Latin prōminent- (stem of prōminēns ), present participle of prominēre “to project, stand out,” equivalent to pro- pro- 1 + -minēre; imminent

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It took the speeches and writings of prominent Americans, especially Thomas Paine, to convince Americans to revolt.

From The Wall Street Journal

TAE—whose backers include Alphabet, Chevron and Goldman Sachs—is one of the oldest and most prominent companies working in the relatively nascent field of commercial nuclear fusion.

From The Wall Street Journal

An alarm bell has been rung by one of Wall Street’s most prominent strategists.

From MarketWatch

In 2006, when a popular uprising forced the king to abdicate, Thapa was already a prominent figure in the pro-democracy movement and had been jailed several times for his role in street protests.

From Barron's

Both Isaac and Amy were prominent members of the Quaker faith and supported its then-radical ideas about equality in all forms.

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.