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Your Roots2Words Affix of the Week is PROTO-:
PROTO- is a prefix meaning first, foremost, or original.
(Prefixes appear at the beginning of words)
**EXAMPLES**
protocol (noun) – customs, regulations, or standard etiquette; a code of conduct for diplomatic relations or other specific situations
BREAKDOWN: PROTO- (first) + COL- (glue)
protohuman (adj) – pertaining to the first humans other than Homo sapiens
BREAKDOWN: PROTO- (first) + HUM- (human) + -AN (pertaining to)
protoplasm (noun) – the living, semifluid contents of plant and animal cells
BREAKDOWN: PROTO- (first) + PLASM- (molded or formed)
prototype (noun) – the original, model, or exemplar on which something is based or formed; an early sample or test model (also prototypical)
BREAKDOWN: PROTO- (original) + TYPE- (impression or kind)
protozoan (noun) – any of various minute unicellular organisms formerly regarded as invertebrates of the phylum Protozoa
BREAKDOWN: PROTO- (first) + ZOA- (animal, life) + -AN (pertaining to)
**EASILY CONFUSED**
protean (adj) – readily changing shape or form; highly variable or mutable
protein (noun) – any of numerous large, complex naturally-produced molecules composed of one or more long chains of amino acids
Both words derive from the root PROTO-, but protean arrives as a derivation of Proteus, the early Greek sea god renowned for his ability to change shape.
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Mike Bergin