From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Prominent \Prom"i*nent\, a. [L. prominens, -entis, p. pr. of
prominere to jut out, to project; pro before, forward +
minere (in comp.) to jut, project: cf. F. prominent. See
Imminent, Eminent.]
[1913 Webster]
1. Standing out, or projecting, beyond the line surface of
something; jutting; protuberant; in high relief; as, a
prominent figure on a vase.
[1913 Webster]
2. Hence; Distinctly manifest; likely to attract attention
from its size or position; conspicuous; as, a prominent
feature of the face; a prominent building.
[1913 Webster]
3. Eminent; distinguished above others; as, a prominent
character.
[1913 Webster]
Prominent' moth (Zool.), any moth of the family
{Notodontid[ae]}; a notodontian; -- so called because the
larva has a hump or prominence on its back. Several of the
species are injurious to fruit trees.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
prominent
adj 1: having a quality that thrusts itself into attention; "an
outstanding fact of our time is that nations poisoned by
anti semitism proved less fortunate in regard to their
own freedom"; "a new theory is the most prominent feature
of the book"; "salient traits"; "a spectacular rise in
prices"; "a striking thing about Picadilly Circus is the
statue of Eros in the center"; "a striking resemblance
between parent and child" [syn: outstanding,
prominent, salient, spectacular, striking]
2: conspicuous in position or importance; "a big figure in the
movement"; "big man on campus"; "he's very large in financial
circles"; "a prominent citizen" [syn: big, large,
prominent]