Protestant

American  

[prot-uh-stuhnt, pruh-tes-tuhnt] / ˈprɒt ə stənt, prəˈtɛs tənt /

noun

1. any Western Christian who is not an adherent of a Catholic, Anglican, or Eastern Church.

2. an adherent of any of those Christian bodies that separated from the Church of Rome during the Reformation, or of any group descended from them, usually excluding the Anabaptists.

3. (originally) any of the German princes who protested against the decision of the Diet of Speyer in 1529, which had denounced the Reformation.

4. protestant, a person who protests.

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adjective

1. belonging or relating to Protestants or their religion.

2. protestant. protesting.

Protestant British  

/ ˈprɒtɪstənt /

noun

1. 1. an adherent of Protestantism

   2. ( as modifier )

      the Protestant Church

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Protestant Cultural  

1. A Christian belonging to one of the three great divisions of Christianity (the other two are the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church). Protestantism began during the Renaissance as a protest against the established (Roman Catholic) church (see also established church). That protest, led by Martin Luther, was called the Reformation, because it sprang from a desire to reform the church and cleanse it of corruption, such as the selling of indulgences.

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Protestants hold a great variety of beliefs, but they are united in rejecting the authority of the pope. Protestant groups include the Amish, the Anglican Communion, the Assemblies of God, the Baptists, Christian Science, the Congregationalists, the Lutheran Church, the Mennonites, the Methodists, the Presbyterian Church, and the Quakers.

Other Word Forms

• anti-Protestant adjective
• non-Protestant adjective
• pro-Protestant adjective
• unprotestant adjective

Etymology

Origin of Protestant

First recorded in 1530–40; from French or German, from Latin prōtestantēs “bearing public witness,” plural of present participle of prōtestārī “to bear public witness”; protest

Example Sentences

Lady Jane, a Protestant great-niece of Henry VIII, was born at the 15th-Century Grade-II* listed scheduled monument in 1537 and became queen on 9 July 1553.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

There have been Protestant churches in particular, and some Catholic churches too, that have been way up front in taking their role as moral arbiters seriously.

From Salon • Feb. 25, 2026

One of the most shocking poems in Protestant hymnbooks is William Cowper’s “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 25, 2026

Overseas religious rights groups said the crackdown on the Protestant church in the town of Yayang began in mid-December, with reportedly around 100 members initially detained, and two dozen still in custody.

From Barron's • Jan. 9, 2026

In Protestant countries censorship was less rigorous, although there were still limits as to what could be published.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton