Protocol Meaning
/ˈpɹəʊtəˌkɒl/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounThe 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.
nounAn 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.
Sentence Examples
Just stick to the protocol, would you?
Politeness is just a protocol that is different in every society.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The diplomats followed strict ____ when greeting the foreign ambassador.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The diplomatic ____ required all delegates to be seated before the head of state entered the room.
Word Origin & History
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 Byzantine Greek πρωτόκολλον (prōtókollon, “first sheet glued onto a manuscript”), from πρῶτος (prôtos, “first”) + κόλλα (kólla, “glue”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"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."
— 1842, Thomas Campbell, Frederick the Great and his Times, volume II, page 47:
"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."
— 1970, Matthew Smith Anderson, The Great Powers and the Near East, 1774-1923, page 32:
"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."
— 1991, Leila Avrin, Scribes, Script, and Books, page 146:
"The protocol of the bull contains elements that appear to be formulaic by the time of John XVIII 's pontificate."
— 1985, Archivum Historiae Pontificiae, volume 23, page 14:
"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."
— 1931, Gye & Purdy, The Cause of Cancer, page 194:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The diplomats followed strict ____ when greeting the foreign ambassador.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The diplomatic ____ required all delegates to be seated before the head of state entered the room.