protocol
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protocol
- /ˈpɹəʊtəˌkɒl/ UK
- /ˈpɹoʊtəˌkɑl/ US
- /ˈpɹoʊtəˌkɔl/ US
- /ˈpɹoʊtəˌkoʊl/ US
- /ˈpɹəʉtəˌkoːl/ Australia
- /ˈpɹəʉtəˌkɔl/ Australia
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Middle French protocolle, protocole (“document, record”), from Late Latin protocollum (“the first sheet of a volume (on which contents and errata were written)”), from Medieval Greek πρωτόκολλον (prōtókollon, “first sheet glued onto a manuscript”), from πρῶτος (prôtos, “first”) + κόλλα (kólla, “glue”).
noun protocols
- The minutes, or official record, of a negotiation or transaction; especially a document drawn up officially which forms the legal basis for subsequent agreements based on it. Another account says that, on the morning of the 31st of May, the king delivered to the prince-royal the crown, the sceptre, and the key of his treasure and gave him his blessing. The privy-counsillor Vockerodt drew up at his desire a protocol of the transaction.
- An official record of a diplomatic meeting or negotiation; later specifically, a draft document setting out agreements to be signed into force by a subsequent formal treaty. The terms of this protocol formed the basis for the Treaty of London signed by the British, French and Russian governments on 6 July 1827.
- An amendment to an official treaty. The 1992 Protocol amended the definitions of other terms, including ‘ship’, ‘oil’ and ‘incident’: Art. 2.
- The first leaf of a roll of papyrus, or the official mark typically found on such a page. They marked the beginning of each scroll with their protocol, a practice that continued in the papyrus trade in the Byzantine Empire [...] into the Islamic period, when there were bilingual protocols in Greek and Arabic.
- The official formulas which appeared at the beginning or end of certain official documents such as charters, papal bulls etc. The protocol of the bull contains elements that appear to be formulaic by the time of John XVIII 's pontificate.
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The original notes of observations made during an experiment.
The following is an abstract of the protocol of the experiment: Tumour extract.—A measured 16 c.c. of minced Rous Sarcoma tissue was ground with sand and extracted with 400 c.c. of 0.8-per-cent. saline.
Similar: procedure
- The precise method for carrying out or reproducing a given experiment.
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The official rules and guidelines for heads of state and other dignitaries, governing accepted behaviour in relations with other diplomatic representatives or over affairs of state.
Even the Queen (for whom the curtsey is a more standard address) was recently treated to an enthusiastic Obama embrace. Her Majesty, who is not normally known for partaking in such public displays of affection, seemed unperturbed by Michelle Obama's disregard for royal protocol.
Similar: procedure, policy, modalities
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An accepted code of conduct; acceptable behaviour in a given situation or group.
For those uncertain in the protocol of handshaking a formula for the perfect handshake has been devised by scientists at the University of Manchester.
Similar: policy
- A set of formal rules describing how to transmit or exchange data, especially across a network. Moloch passed the message to the Behemoth / Whose master passed it on to Zebedee / It was sent by Internet, by obscure protocols / To its recipient, the delicious Miss Gee
- The set of instructions allowing a licensed medical professional to start, modify, or stop a medical or patient care order.
- The introduction of a liturgical preface, immediately following the Sursum corda dialogue. This protocol of the Preface has been constant, with minor modification, from the Apostolic Tradition, of Hippolytus in 215 A.D., the earliest extant text of the Eucharistic Prayer, to the present 2002 Missale Romanum.
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In some programming languages, a data type declaring a set of members that must be implemented by a class or other data type.
Similar: interface
verb protocols · protocoling · protocolling · protocoled · protocolled
- To make a protocol of.
- To make or write protocols, or first drafts; to issue protocols. Serene Highnesses, who sit there protocolling and manifestoing, and consoling mankind!
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: communications protocol, agreement, convention, register, procedure, minutes, etiquette, design, memorandum, memo, chapter, optional, ceremony, prot, record, acta
Translations
Every language
noun diplomatic document
| 한국어 | 의정서 uijeongseo |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 議定書 giteisho |
| 中文 | 議定書 /议定书 yìdìngshū |
| Français | protocole |
| Ελληνικά | πρωτόκολλο protókollo |
| Română | protocol |
| Русский | протоко́л protokól |
noun treaty amendment
| Русский | протоко́л protokól |
|---|
noun rule, guideline etc which guides diplomatic behaviour
| Español | protocolo |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 外交禮節 /外交礼节 wàijiāo lǐjié |
| Português | protocolo |
| Français | protocole |
| Italiano | protocollo |
| Ελληνικά | πρωτόκολλο protókollo |
| Română | protocol |
| Русский | протоко́л protokól |
noun computing
| Español | protocolo |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 프로토콜 peurotokol |
| 日本語 | プロトコル purotokoru |
| 中文 | 協定 /协定 xiédìng, 協議 /协议 xiéyì |
| हिन्दी | प्रोटोकॉल proṭokŏl |
| Kiswahili | itifaki |
| Português | protocolo |
| Français | protocole |
| Deutsch | Protokoll |
| Italiano | protocollo |
| Ελληνικά | πρωτόκολλο protókollo |
| Română | protocol |
| Русский | протоко́л protokól |
| Tiếng Việt | giao thức |
| العربية | بْرُوتُوكُول brotokōl |
verb to make a protocol of
| 中文 | 擬訂 /拟订 nǐdìng, 拟定 nǐdìng |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | protokollieren |
| Ελληνικά | πρωτοκολλώ protokolló |
| Русский | протоколи́ровать protokolírovatʹ, запротоколи́ровать zaprotokolírovatʹ |
verb to issue protocols
| Ελληνικά | πρωτοκολλώ protokolló |
|---|
Talk about this word "protocol." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/protocol. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. protocol. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/protocol "protocol." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/protocol.Cite this
@misc{protocol_2026,
title = {protocol},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/protocol},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
