nonprofessional
Americanadjective
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not a member of or trained in a specific profession.
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Sports. not offering or engaged in for payment or a monetary prize; amateur.
a nonprofessional league; a nonprofessional player.
noun
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a person who is not a professional.
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an amateur athlete.
adjective
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not of, relating to, suitable for, or engaged in a profession
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not undertaken or performed for gain or by people who are paid
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of nonprofessional
First recorded in 1795–1805; non- + professional
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Many are new to stock-market trading, with a reported record number of trading accounts being opened by nonprofessional investors, including, reportedly, brokerage accounts for children and even babies and for senior citizens.
From MarketWatch • May 21, 2026
That would whack stocks, as nonprofessional investors have reliably bought every dip because they have been conditioned to believe stocks always rise.
From Barron's • Mar. 11, 2026
Some companies already use AI to co-write financial reports, and the Education Department recently reclassified accounting degrees as nonprofessional.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 11, 2025
Burke believes that his own interest in these people, often played by nonprofessional actors in his work, can translate to audiences.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 30, 2025
The subject must have a history of heroism in a nonprofessional capacity.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
