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Indeed it is the protean ability of Western civilization to be self-critical and self-correcting - not only in producing wealth but over the whole range of human activities - that constitutes its most decisive superiority over any of its rivals.
Paul Johnson

Meaning of "protean" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD PROTEAN

From Proteus.
info
Etymology is the study of the origin of words and their changes in structure and significance.
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PRONUNCIATION OF PROTEAN

protean  [prəʊˈtiːən] play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF PROTEAN

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Protean is an adjective.
The adjective is the word that accompanies the noun to determine or qualify it.

WHAT DOES PROTEAN MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Proteus

In Greek mythology, Proteus is an early sea-god or god of rivers and oceanic bodies of water, one of several deities whom Homer calls the "Old Man of the Sea". Some who ascribe to him a specific domain call him the god of "elusive sea change", which suggests the constantly changing nature of the sea or the liquid quality of water in general. He can foretell the future, but, in a mytheme familiar to several cultures, will change his shape to avoid having to; he will answer only to someone who is capable of capturing him. From this feature of Proteus comes the adjective protean, with the general meaning of "versatile", "mutable", "capable of assuming many forms". "Protean" has positive connotations of flexibility, versatility and adaptability.

Definition of protean in the English dictionary

The definition of protean in the dictionary is readily taking on various shapes or forms; variable.

WORDS THAT RHYME WITH PROTEAN


Actaeon
ækˈtiːən
Aegean
iːˈdʒiːən
aeon
ˈiːən
Andean
ænˈdiːən
Atlantean
ˌætlænˈtiːən
Behan
ˈbiːən
Caribbean
ˌkærɪˈbiːən
eon
ˈiːən
Fijian
fiːˈdʒiːən
gigantean
ˌdʒaɪɡænˈtiːən
Korean
kəˈriːən
lien
ˈliːən
Nabataean
ˌnæbəˈtiːən
Nabatean
ˌnæbəˈtiːən
pantheon
pænˈθiːən
pean
ˈpiːən
Pyrenean
ˌpɪrəˈniːən
sien
ˈsiːən
Theocritan
θɪˌɒkrɪˈtiːən
Tupian
tuːˈpiːən

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE PROTEAN

protea
proteaceous
Proteas
protease
protease inhibitor
protect
protectant
protected
protected species
protectingly
protection
protection factor
protection money
protection order
protection racket
protection ratio
protectionism
protectionist
protective
protective coloration

WORDS THAT END LIKE PROTEAN

adamantean
arbutean
costean
Dantean
insectean
Mozartean
nemertean
Procrustean
stean
teleostean
Thyestean

Synonyms and antonyms of protean in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «PROTEAN»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «protean» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of protean

Translation of «protean» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF PROTEAN

Find out the translation of protean to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of protean from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «protean» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

千变万化
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

proteica
570 millions of speakers

English

protean
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

बहुरूपिया
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

متقلب
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

многообразный
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

protéica
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

আকৃতি পরিবর্তনের তত্পর
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

changeant
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Protean
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

proteische
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

変幻自在な
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

프로테우스
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Protean
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

hay biến hình
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

மாறுகிற
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

प्रथिने
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

dönek
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

mutevole
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

zmienny
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

багатоманітний
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

proteic
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

πρωτεϊκή
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

veranderend
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

Protean
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

protean
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of protean

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «PROTEAN»

The term «protean» is regularly used and occupies the 93.835 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Regularly used
56
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «protean» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of protean
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «protean».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «PROTEAN» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «protean» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «protean» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about protean

EXAMPLES

3 QUOTES WITH «PROTEAN»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word protean.
1
Asa Gray
This substance, which is manifold in its forms and protean in its transformations, has, in its state of living matter, one physiological name which has become familiar, that of protoplasm.
2
Paul Johnson
Indeed it is the protean ability of Western civilization to be self-critical and self-correcting - not only in producing wealth but over the whole range of human activities - that constitutes its most decisive superiority over any of its rivals.
3
Alan Kay
The protean nature of the computer is such that it can act like a machine or like a language to be shaped and exploited.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «PROTEAN»

Discover the use of protean in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to protean and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
The Protean Self: Human Resilience in an Age of Fragmentation
Describes a psychological trend that sees the self as becoming fluid and many-sided as a resilient answer to confusion and changing moorings of modern living.
Robert Jay Lifton, 1999
2
The protean body: a Rolfer's view of human flexibility
Promotes an awareness of the body's capacity for change and the extent to which bodily behavior is programmed through case examples of the implementation of the therapeutic techniques of Ida Rolf
Don Johnson, 1977
3
The Power of Paradox: The Protean Leader and Leading in ...
The Power of Paradox: The Protean Leader and Leading in Uncertain Times Describes seven leadership paradoxes that are inherent in running today’s complex and changing organizations.
Nina Rosoff, 2012
4
Protean behaviour: the biology of unpredictability
This fascinating book will bring new insights into many aspects of behavioral science, natural history, biology, and psychology.
Peter M. Driver, David Andrew Humphries, 1988
5
Working in Organisations
PROTEAN CAREERS The career as we once knew it - as a series of upward moves, with steadily increasing income, power, status and security - has died,' Douglas T. Hall writes. 'Nevertheless, people will always have work lives that unfold ...
Andrew Kakabadse, John Bank, Susan Vinnicombe, 2004
6
The Future Arrived Yesterday: The Rise of the Protean ...
Provocative and pragmatic, The Future Arrived Yesterday is a dynamic blueprint for a tumultuous economic age. From the Hardcover edition.
Michael Malone, 2009
7
The Protean Ass: The Metamorphoses of Apuleius from ...
Robert H. F. Carver traces readers' responses to the novel from the third to the seventeenth centuries.
Robert H. F. Carver, 2007
8
The Individual in the Changing Working Life
Proposition two: Protean career attitude will be positively associated with job search intensity during unemployment. Protean career attitude may also be indirectly related to job search intensity via its positive effect upon psychological health.
Katharina Naswall, Johnny Hellgren, Magnus Sverke, 2008
9
Vaudeville old & new: an encyclopedia of variety ...
The front traveler (plush house curtain) was hung immediately behind the proscenium. PROTEAN ACTS A protean artiste was essentially a character actor who enacted a story by assuming all the roles, each one in rapid succession and back ...
Frank Cullen, Florence Hackman, Donald McNeilly, 2004
10
The Protean Life of Language: Four Studies
Study of second person pronouns in English, Russian, and Sinhalese.
Regi Siriwardena, 2001

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «PROTEAN»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term protean is used in the context of the following news items.
1
A protean John Zorn musical marathon at LACMA and UCLA
John Zorn is a defiant, protean musician, inescapable on the American scene everywhere it would seem except Los Angeles. But after a 25-year absence, ... «Los Angeles Times, May 15»
2
Joseph Arthur, Brooklyn's Protean Poet of Melody and Canvas
In a windowless, clandestine locale in Red Hook, Brooklyn, Joseph Arthur is kicking back in his living/studio space, an acoustic guitar on his lap. The instrument- ... «Village Voice, Apr 15»
3
Protean Nature: Paul Chan on Failure, Erotic Fiction, and the Hugo …
I think one of the things I appreciate most about art, if there is such a thing called art, is its protean nature. Proteus was a minor Greek god, a shape-shifter, the ... «BLOUIN ARTINFO, Mar 15»
4
NTT develops 'protean light' which allows still images to 'move'
The newly developed “protean light” lets the brain connect the colors and shapes and, as a result, creates illusions in which the still images are seen as if they ... «The Japan Times, Feb 15»
5
Protean Rebrands as Stratos, Closes $5.8 Million Seed Round
He says the name change was done to “reflect some of the qualities we look for: strength; expansiveness; universality. The pronunciation with Protean was also ... «Xconomy, Oct 14»
6
Maker of In-Wheel Electric Car Motors Goes to China
Protean Electric, an automotive start-up headquartered in Auburn Hills, Mich., is currently scouting sites for a manufacturing center in China and says the ... «IEEE Spectrum, Mar 14»
7
Protean Electric in-wheel motors rolling toward production
Protean Electric has teamed up with a major automobile manufacturer to develop its novel in-wheel electric motor technology, with the intent of using it in a ... «Fox News, Dec 13»
8
In-Wheel Electric Motor From Protean To Be Used In FAW-EV Bora EV
We've published stories about Protean's in-wheel electric motor in the past. They generated quite a bit of enthusiasm as well as interesting commentary. Protean ... «CleanTechnica, Dec 13»
9
VW's Chinese Partner Signs Deal With Protean For Wheel Motors
FAW-VW will use two Protean in-wheel motors in a new rear-wheel-drive electric car to be based on the Bora compact sedan, a car somewhat similar to the ... «Green Car Reports, Dec 13»
10
Protean Electric Announces Partnership To Develop In-Wheel Motor …
"Protean Electric is very pleased and honored to be working with FAW-VW. Our involvement with this prestigious automaker shows that Protean Electric is ... «PR Newswire, Dec 13»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Protean [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/protean>. May 2024 ».
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