proclamation
Americannoun
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proclamations
plural
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something that is proclaimed; a public and official announcement.
-
the act of proclaiming.
Usage
What does proclamation mean? A proclamation is an official announcement made in public. Proclamation is the noun form of the verb proclaim, meaning to announce or declare something in an official or formal manner. Proclamations are typically made by public officials. Like the similar word announcement, proclamation is often used with the verb make. Example: The mayor called a press conference to issue a proclamation declaring an official citywide day of celebration for the new champions of baseball.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of proclamation
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English proclamacioun (from Middle French proclamacion, ) from Latin prōclāmātiōn- (stem of prōclāmātiō ), equivalent to prōclāmāt(us) (past participle of prōclāmāre “to cry out, proclaim ”) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
A proclamation is a formal public statement. If the mayor of your town issued a proclamation honoring the state champion field hockey team, this is an official statement of praise and celebration. A major statement made in front of an audience or the authoritative word on some subject is a proclamation. It's usually used in an official or government context, although an ordinary person can also make a proclamation, like your proclamation that you'll never dance again after your embarrassment at last week's hip hop recital. The root is proclaim, declare publicly, though the i is dropped in proclamation.
Vocabulary lists containing proclamation
Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" Speech (1963)
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The American Civil War
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The Emancipation Proclamation (1862)
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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:
According to the proclamation announced Thursday, the duties are tiered according to the capacity of the drones and their place of origin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Hathaway’s gospel-infused arrangement and call-and-response with a crowd at the Troubadour transformed Carole King’s song from a private promise into a proclamation of Black resilience.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2026
Chief EU observer Annalisa Corrado urged candidates to "wait patiently for the official proclamation of the results."
From Barron's ● Jun. 9, 2026
Gov Abbott issued a proclamation declaring a state of disaster on Friday, which states the outbreak presents "an imminent threat or occurrence of widespread danger and injury to the Texas agricultural industry".
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
And he promised to work toward fulfilling the other demands—a city council proclamation honoring King’s memory and the cancellation of public school on the day of King’s funeral.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
She's given to grand proclamations like "I'm unstoppable", or "I will exist in multitudes".
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Around Angel’s old barber chair, just about every inch of wall space is occupied by proclamations and photos.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
These proclamations at times added to the confusion.
From Salon ● May 10, 2026
The court starts with grand judicial maximalist proclamations from the founding about how it’s the duty of courts, especially Virginia courts, to decide legal questions.
From Slate ● May 8, 2026
The king made a series of proclamations encouraging building, trade, and virtue.
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
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.
