proclaim
Americanverb (used with object)
-
proclaims,
present (3rd person singular)
-
proclaimed,
past participle, past
-
proclaiming
present participle
-
to announce or declare in an official or formal manner.
to proclaim war.
- Synonyms:
- advertise
-
to announce or declare in an open or ostentatious way.
to proclaim one's opinions.
- Synonyms:
- promulgate
-
to indicate or make known publicly or openly.
-
to extol or praise publicly.
Let them proclaim the Lord.
-
to declare (a territory, district, etc.) subject to particular legal restrictions.
-
to declare to be an outlaw, evildoer, or the like.
-
to denounce or prohibit publicly.
verb (used without object)
-
proclaims,
present (3rd person singular)
-
proclaimed,
past participle, past
-
proclaiming
present participle
verb
-
(may take a clause as object) to announce publicly
-
(may take a clause as object) to show or indicate plainly
-
to praise or extol
Synonym Usage
See announce.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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proclaimernoun
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proclamationnoun
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reproclaimverb (used with object)
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proclamatoryadjective
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self-proclaimedadjective
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self-proclaimingadjective
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unproclaimedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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proclaimsimple
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proclaimssimple
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have proclaimedperfect
-
has proclaimedperfect
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am proclaimingprogressive
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are proclaimingprogressive
-
is proclaimingprogressive
-
have been proclaimingperfect progressive
-
has been proclaimingperfect progressive
Past
-
proclaimedsimple
-
had proclaimedperfect
-
was proclaimingprogressive
-
were proclaimingprogressive
-
had been proclaimingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of proclaim
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin prōclāmāre “to cry out”; equivalent to pro- 1 + claim
Explanation
"I proclaim the Olympic Games open." Every two years with words similar to these, the Olympic games officially begin. To proclaim is to exclaim or declare. When you proclaim something, you are saying it loud and clear and in public. A doctor can proclaim you healthy after you have recovered from a long illness. The panel of judges may have trouble proclaiming the winner in a very tight race. What you are saying out loud can be called a proclamation. Proclamations were once only made by Kings or other ruling leaders which is why the word proclaim has an official feeling to it.
Vocabulary lists containing proclaim
Power Prefix: pro
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Christmas Carol Vocab: A Lyrical Lexicon
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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.
See Examples For:
The rapid advances in AI spurred some industry leaders to proclaim that machine intelligence would wipe out millions of jobs almost overnight.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 11, 2026
After overcoming each temptation, he goes to Galilee to proclaim God’s word.
From Salon ● Jun. 5, 2026
And he coached basketball, so he would proclaim this with a ball slung under his arm, wearing a jersey that featured his exuberantly hairy shoulders.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026
There is no need for a long talk to proclaim the main purpose of your institution.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
As for Major Puff, he was unsure whether he could proclaim victory or admit defeat or simply call it a tie.
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
Cunningham proclaims herself as a warrior for “common sense” by fighting off a scourge that no one can see.
From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026
Abrams even has a song called The Knife, where she proclaims she'll live with a blade "in my side", as an act of defiance.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
“Lincoln was a feared wrestler who competed in hundreds of matches,” one such video proclaims.
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
“I don’t want a break, I want to stop,” Ilana proclaims.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2026
"Ah, but when the queen proclaims one king and the Hand another, whose peace do they protect?"
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
For a company that has owned a pioneering AI lab since 2014 and has proclaimed itself “AI-first” since 2016, Google seems to have squandered an early lead, experts say.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
A “stunning loss,” the New York Times proclaimed on Wednesday.
From Salon ● Aug. 13, 2026
“This historic opportunity will shine a global spotlight on our community,” the Aquatic Center proclaimed last year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2026
Called “Situational Awareness,” the essay proclaimed that AI would soon become more powerful than humans and that most of the world hadn’t woken up to this reality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Everyone but the children knew that she always proclaimed her darlings the winner, when she could get away with it.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
"It's a serious storm," Governor Josh Green said, proclaiming a state of emergency to ensure the state and its counties "have sufficient resources to clear debris, secure infrastructure, and take other measures to prepare."
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
Septimus Piesse, a 19th-century chemist, translated sounds into smells, proclaiming an “octave of odors,” the authors explain, “with correspondences between notes and scents providing the basis for harmonious olfactory combinations.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
But Platner has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, proclaiming himself a changed man.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
The Education Department highlighted several Wednesday in a news release proclaiming that the “cycle of over-borrowing is over.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
It was not, however, till midmorning—which I knew by the position of the sun and the ringing of the church bell proclaiming Terce—that I reached the rock.
From "Crispin: The Cross of Lead" by Avi
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.
