protestant

1 of 2

noun

prot·​es·​tant ˈprä-tə-stənt 

sense 2 is also

prə-ˈte- 

1

Protestant

a

: any of a group of German princes and cities presenting a defense of freedom of conscience against an edict of the Diet of Speyer in 1529 intended to suppress the Lutheran movement

b

: a member of any of several church denominations denying the universal authority of the Pope and affirming the Reformation principles of justification by faith alone, the priesthood of all believers, and the primacy of the Bible as the only source of revealed truth

broadly : a Christian not of a Catholic or Eastern church

2

: one who makes or enters a protest

Protestantism

ˈprä-tə-stən-ˌti-zəm 

noun

protestant

2 of 2

adjective

1

capitalized : of or relating to Protestants, their churches, or their religion

2

: making or sounding a protest

the two protestant ladies up and marched out

—Time

Examples of protestant in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Evangelical protestants now make up a larger share of the population in Greater Cincinnati ‒ which once leaned Catholic ‒ than Catholics and mainline protestants combined. —Victoria Moorwood, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025

Still, three months into Trump's second term, white evangelical protestants were some of his staunchest supporters, according to Pew Research Center think tank, which suggested 72 percent approved of Trump's handling of the presidency. —Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 June 2025

Adjective

What To Know Lyell was deeply involved with the SBC, America's largest protestant denomination. —Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 June 2025

The area has a large population of Mennonites, a Christian religious-cultural group established during the protestant reform. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French, from Latin protestant-, protestans, present participle of protestari

First Known Use

Noun

1539, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

1539, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

protestant

noun

prot·​es·​tant

ˈprät-əs-tənt,

 sense 2 is also  prə-ˈtes-

1

capitalized : a member of one of several Christian churches that separated from the Roman Catholic church in the 16th century or of a church founded by members of these churches

2

: one who protests

protestant adjective often capitalized

Protestantism

ˈprät-əs-tənt-ˌiz-əm

noun

Legal Definition

protestant

noun

pro·​tes·​tant prə-ˈtes-tənt 

: a person challenging an action of an administrative agency