protuberance
Americannoun
-
the condition, state, or quality of being protuberant.
-
a protuberant part or thing; projection or bulge.
- Synonyms:
- swelling, protrusion
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of protuberance
First recorded in 1640–50; protuber(ant) + -ance
Explanation
A protuberance is something that sticks out, like a swelling or a lump or a bunion on your foot. A protuberance doesn’t have to be hideous; it could be your nose on your face or a knot on a tree. The late Latin word prōtūberāre meant "to swell," coming from the prefix pro, which means "forward," and the root word tūber, meaning "swelling." And "root word" is appropriate here, since a tuber is a thick, fleshy part of a root, like a potato. And that should help you remember how to spell the word protuberance. Don't you love it when a word's meaning and its spelling work together?
Vocabulary lists containing protuberance
Ethan Frome
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On the Origin of Species
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Truly Devious
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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.
Protuberances, he came to think of them as.
From The New Yorker • Oct. 8, 2018
Protuberances on lofty rocks looked like heads in pointed and round caps,—heads peering out from behind gigantic walls of some kind, and gazing in silence and malignity to see who was passing below.
From Pan Michael An Historical Novel of Poland, the Ukraine, and Turkey. by Sienkiewicz, Henryk
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.
