proto-

first in time, original, primitive: protoplast
first in importance, principal, chief: protonotary
prehistoric or original: said of a people or language: Proto-Germanic
1. on the way to becoming the (specified) thing or kind of person: proto-suburbia, a proto-terrorist
2. on the way to having the (specified) quality or relationship: a proto-Cubist painting
Chem.
1. being that member of a series of compounds having the lowest proportion of the (specified) element or radical: protoxide
2. being the parent form of a (specified) substance