profession

American  

[pruh-fesh-uhn] / prəˈfɛʃ ən /

noun

1. a vocation requiring knowledge of some department of learning or science.

   the profession of teaching.

   Synonyms:

   employment, calling

2. any vocation or business.

3. the body of persons engaged in an occupation or calling.

   to be respected by the medical profession.

4. the act of professing; avowal; a declaration, whether true or false.

   professions of dedication.

   Synonyms:

   protestation, assertion, asseveration

5. the declaration of belief in or acceptance of religion or a faith.

   the profession of Christianity.

6. a religion or faith professed.

7. the declaration made on entering into membership of a church or religious order.

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profession British  

/ prəˈfɛʃən /

noun

1. an occupation requiring special training in the liberal arts or sciences, esp one of the three learned professions, law, theology, or medicine

2. the body of people in such an occupation

3. the act of professing; avowal; declaration

4. 1. Also called: profession of faith.  a declaration of faith in a religion, esp as made on entering the Church of that religion or an order belonging to it

   2. the faith or the religion that is the subject of such a declaration

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Synonym Usage

See occupation.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonprofession
  noun
• professionless
  noun

Etymology

Origin of profession

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, from Medieval Latin professiōn-, stem of professiō “the taking of the vows of a religious order,” from profess(us) “declared publicly” ( see professed) + -iō -ion

Explanation

An open declaration of an opinion or belief is a profession. If you announce that you believe the earth is flat, your profession of this opinion might cause some giggling among your well-educated friends. Careers that require specialized training or advanced degrees are considered professions. Your parents may want you to go into a profession like the practice of law, but you dream of being a rodeo clown. The collective group of people practicing a profession is also called profession. The medical profession doesn't know what to make of that thing growing out of your foot. You are a medical mystery!

Example Sentences

The prayer is a response to the Coronation Oath, enacted into law in 1689, in which the monarch pledges to maintain “the true Profession of the Gospel and the Protestant Reformed Religion Established by Law.”

From Washington Times • Apr. 30, 2023

Posters seeking professional soldiers have sprung up in the Russian capital in recent weeks declaring that "Our Profession is to defend the Motherland."

From Reuters • Apr. 20, 2023

Cunningham’s 1913 essay, “Photography as a Profession for Women,” describes it as “not really a matter of suitability to sex as to individuality.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2022

Later 19th Century censuses simply asked for "Rank, Profession or Occupation", without any distinction between personal occupation or industry of employment.

From BBC • Dec. 30, 2021

Fellow Passengers in the Diligence to MALAGA—one, a corpulent and famous Bull-Fighter, and the other, an envious and admiring follower of the same ennobling Profession.

From Our Artist in Cuba, Peru, Spain and Algiers Leaves from The Sketch-Book of a Traveller, 1864-1868 by Carleton, George W.

Related Words

• art
• business
• career
• craft
• employment
• field
• line of work
• occupation
• pursuit
• role
• situation
• specialty
• undertaking