Etymology

From German Protoplasma, coined by Czech physiologist Johannes Evangelista Purkinje, from Ancient Greek πρῶτος ‎(prôtos, “first”) + πλάσμα ‎(plásma, “something molded”). The word was in Late Latin, meaning "first created thing," and may have existed in Medieval Greek in a different sense.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pʁo.to.plasm/
• Homophone: protoplasmes