Type: Charm
Pronunciation: pro-TAY-goh
Description: Invisible shield that reflects spells and blocks physical entities.
Seen/Mentioned: First seen in 1995, in which Harry is taught this spell by Hermione in preparation for the third task in the Triwizard Tournament. Albus Dumbledore uses a similar spell which reverses the construction of glass back into sand when Voldemort sent shards of glass to try to stab Dumbledore. Fred and George Weasley enchanted hats they dubbed "shield hats" with this spell in 1997.
Etymology: Latin protego, "I cover" or "I protect".
Notes: The original description of this spell states that it rebounds minor jinxes to the caster. However, it is shown in the books that it can also be used to reflect or lessen the effects of more powerful spells, depending on the skill of the caster. In 1998, it is also shown to be able to create a sort of force-field across an area, and is used frequently to prevent two participants in an argument from reaching each other.