1. a chief clerk or registrar of a court
Usage: legal
2. a high-ranking papal official in the Roman Catholic Church
Usage: ecclesiastical

Examples

• The protonotary filed all the court documents for the case.
• She worked as a protonotary in the county courthouse for fifteen years.
• The protonotary apostolic signed the official papal document.
• Court records were maintained by the protonotary’s office.
• The protonotary verified the authenticity of the legal papers.
• He was appointed as protonotary by the Vatican.
• The protonotary’s seal was required on all official court orders.