Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

protractor

[proh-trak-ter, pruh-]
See more synonyms for protractor on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a person or thing that protracts.
  2. (in surveying, mathematics, etc.) an instrument having a graduated arc for plotting or measuring angles.
  3. Anatomy. a muscle that causes a part to protrude.
Show More

Origin of protractor

From Medieval Latin, dating back to 1605–15; see origin at protract, -tor
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for protractor

Historical Examples

  • The protractor has a graduated disk, and is adjustable so it can be disposed at any angle.

    Practical Mechanics for Boys

    J. S. Zerbe

  • He was using a protractor, which was divided into Galactic degrees.

    The Players

    Everett B. Cole

  • Protractor: that which extends or lengthens out: applied to muscles.

  • We'll start with the one with the coconut ice and the protractor, please.

    The Judge

    Rebecca West

  • At that point find, by means of a protractor, the angle a projection of the chord makes with the face of the beam.

British Dictionary definitions for protractor

protractor

noun
  1. an instrument for measuring or drawing angles on paper, usually a flat semicircular transparent plastic sheet graduated in degrees
  2. a person or thing that protracts
  3. a surgical instrument for removing a bullet from the body
  4. anatomy a former term for extensor
Show More
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

Word Origin and History for protractor

n.

1610s, "one who lengthens (an action)," from Medieval Latin protractor, agent noun from Latin protrahere "to draw forward" (see protraction); sense of "instrument for drawing angles" first recorded 1650s.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
protractor in Medicine

protractor

(prō-trăk′tər)
n.
  1. A muscle that extends a limb or other part.
Show More
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.