Dictionary entry

Protomartyr

Webster's Dictionary 1913

Pro″to‐mar′tyr (?), n. [LL., fr. Gr. �; � first + � martyr: cf. F. protomartyr. See Proto-, and Martyr.] The first martyr; the first who suffers, or is sacrificed, in any cause; — applied esp. to Stephen, the first Christian martyr.