salient

¹sa·lient

adjective \ˈsā-lyənt, -lē-ənt\

Definition of SALIENT

1

: moving by leaps or springs : jumping

2

: jetting upward <a salient fountain>

3

a : projecting beyond a line, surface, or level

b : standing out conspicuously : prominent; especially : of notable significance <similar to … Prohibition, but there are a couple of salient differences — Tony Gibbs>

— sa·lient·ly adverb

Examples of SALIENT

1. Then there were those who doubted the need for radio in the first place, since the telegraph was already ubiquitous. Marconi's salient achievement was to realize that radio waves could be transmitted across vast distances, an incalculable step forward in mass communications. —Kevin Baker, New York Times Book Review, 5 Nov. 2006
2. A 2002 study conducted at the University of Illinois by Diener and Seligman found that the most salient characteristics shared by the 10% of students with the highest levels of happiness and the fewest signs of depression were their strong ties to friends and family and commitment to spending time with them. —Claudia Wallis, Time, 17 Jan. 2005
3. The difference between the people Liebling chose to write about and today's celebrity culture is the difference between the “profile” and the “portrait.” A profile is an outline, a concise rendering of the most salient facts, though the facts may be inessential and even inaccurate in their generality. … A portrait, on the other hand, is a revelation, an exposure. —Lee Siegel, Harper's, December 2004
4. Kermeen cites “a book published in 1882” that says of ghosts at the Myrtles: “The lights are never extinguished at the plantation. When the lights are all out, something always happens.” Kermeen does not further identify this book (another source says it was published “in 1900”), but the salient point here is that it apparently did not mention the Chloe tale. That suggests it was probably unknown until relatively recently. —Joe Nickell, Skeptical Inquirer, September/October 2003

Origin of SALIENT

Latin salient-, saliens, present participle of salire to leap — more at sally

First Known Use: 1646

²sa·lient

noun \ˈsā-lyənt, -lē-ənt\

Definition of SALIENT

: something (as a promontory) that projects outward or upward from its surroundings; especially : an outwardly projecting part of a fortification, trench system, or line of defense

Examples of SALIENT

1. The attempts of the Teutonic armies to envelop and destroy some portion of the Russian forces involved the creation of several dangerous salients in the Russian line, followed by an endeavor to close the neck of each salient by attacks from both sides and so to isolate the armies forming its apex. —Douglas Wilson Johnson, Topography and Strategy in the War, 1917

Origin of SALIENT

(see ¹salient)

First Known Use: 1828

Other Military Terms

bivouac, logistics, petard, sally, supernumerary, tactical