prototype

[ proh-tuh-tahyp ]

noun

1. the original or model on which something is based or formed.

   Synonyms: pattern

2. someone or something that serves to illustrate the typical qualities of a class; model; exemplar:

   She is the prototype of a student activist.

3. something analogous to another thing of a later period:

   a Renaissance prototype of our modern public housing.

4. Biology. an archetype; a primitive form regarded as the basis of a group.

verb (used with object)

, pro·to·typed, pro·to·typ·ing.

1. to create the prototype or an experimental model of:

   to prototype a solar-power car.

prototype

/ ˌprəʊtəˈtɪpɪk; ˈprəʊtəˌtaɪp /

noun

1. one of the first units manufactured of a product, which is tested so that the design can be changed if necessary before the product is manufactured commercially
2. a person or thing that serves as an example of a type
3. biology the ancestral or primitive form of a species or other group; an archetype

Derived Forms

• ˌprotoˈtypal, adjective

Other Words From

• pro·to·typ·i·cal [proh-t, uh, -, tip, -i-k, uh, l]; pro·to·typ·ic pro·to·typ·al [proh-t, uh, -, tip, -, uh, l], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of prototype¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; from New Latin prōtotypon, from Greek prōtótypon, noun use of neuter of prōtótypos “original”; proto-, type

Example Sentences

The researchers are now building prototype lighting strips to test on surfboards and kayaks.

From BBC

“I’d never met him, and didn’t know what his voice sounded like. But I figured it would at least be a good prototype, a sample we could play for other voiceover actors when we started auditions,” Case said.

From Los Angeles Times

To that end, there’s another even more capable version of the jig in the room next door, a prototype that staff here hope will be even better.

From BBC

To a casual observer, the quintet might seem like the prototype girl band: Coiffed, choreographed and bristling with confidence.

From BBC

North American Rockwell International, later known as Rockwell International and now a part of Boeing, built the prototype in 1972 at its Downey facility.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• mock-up
• model
• precursor