| 释义 |
prominent, a. (n.)|ˈprɒmɪnənt|
[ad. L. prōminēns, -ēnt-em, pres. pple. of prōmin-ēre to jut out; f. prō, pro-1 + *minēre, f. root of minæ projecting points or pinnacles, hence threats. Cf. F. prominent (16th c.) and eminent, imminent.]
A. adj.
1. Jutting or standing out above or beyond the adjacent surface; projecting, protuberant.
1545Joye Exp. Dan. viii. 129 b, That prominent great horne of the Gote in his most strength broken of. 1646Sir T. Browne Pseud. Ep. 261 In the picture of Jonah..Whales are described with two prominent spouts on their heads. 1721Bradley Philos. Acc. Wks. Nat. 55 The Eyes of the Crab are more prominent from the Body than those of Lobsters. 1826Kirby & Sp. Entomol. IV. 305 Prominent, when the head is in the horizontal line, and forms no angle with the trunk. 1834M. Somerville Connex. Phys. Sc. i. (1849) 8 The prominent mass at the terrestrial equator. 1870Rolleston Anim. Life 119 An orifice with prominent tumid lips.
2. a. Standing out so as to strike the eye; conspicuous.
1759Johnson Rasselas x, To exhibit in his portraits of Nature such prominent and striking features, as recall the original to every mind. 1883W. Gardner in Science Gossip May 99 The most prominent object was a mountain on the other side of the valley, composed of three peaks.
b. fig. Standing out so as to strike the attention or notice; conspicuous; distinguished above others.
1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. ii. I. 200 Attachment to France had been prominent among the crimes imputed by the Commons to Clarendon. 1850Robertson Serm. Ser. iii. viii. 111 God is there, accordingly self is less prominent. 1885Clodd Myths & Dr. i. vi. 113 Ancestor-worship..was the prominent feature of the old Aryan religion.
B. n.
†1.
a. A protruding or projecting part; a prominence, an eminence. Obs. rare.
c1611Chapman Iliad xi. 624 A certain city shines Upon a lofty prominent. Ibid. xii. 291 Till highest prominents, Hill tops, low meddows, and the fields..are hid.
b. A prominent person. Now N. Amer.
1608Chapman Byron's Trag. v. i. Plays 1873 II. 313 Byr. Where shall this weight fall? on what region Must this declining prominent pour his lode? 1948Sun (Baltimore) 19 June 3/2 Hillcrest Country Club, a favorite among movie prominents, was blown up today by an accumulation of gas. 1975Maclean's Mag. (Toronto) 15 Dec. 62/2 Several prominents such as John Diefenbaker and Joey Smallwood pushed for a reprieve.
2. Entom. Collectors' name for Cuspidate moths of the genus Notodonta, containing many species, European and American.
1819G. Samouelle Entomol. Compend. 418 Notodonta tritopha. The great Prominent. 1832Rennie Conspect. Butterfl. & M. 35 The Pale Prominent. 1869E. Newman Brit. Moths 225–231 The Coxcomb Prominent,..Maple Prominent,..Scarce Prominent,..White Prominent,..Swallow Prominent [etc.]. Mod. The Marbled Browns belong to the same genus as the Prominents.
C. Comb., as prominent-eyed, prominent-nosed, etc.
1895S. S. Buckman in Pop. Sci. Monthly Jan. 372 The small-jawed, long and prominent-nosed individual. 1903Daily Mail 10 Sept. 2/7 The narrow-chested, the fat, the flabby, the prominent-eyed. |