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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Related Words

See occupation.

Other Word 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” ( professed ) + -iō -ion

Example Sentences

Stasevska grew up poor, but music education was mandatory for her and her brothers: “My father said, ‘This is going to be your profession.’

From Los Angeles Times

In fact, Elisha’s moralizing about her profession made her teasingly start calling him “preacher.”

From Literature

His calling card: He added a dose of mirth to the sober ministerings of a profession not known for its sense of humor or rhetorical skills.

From The Wall Street Journal

Due to the fuel shortage, Diaz had to "park the motorcycle, park the car" and return to his former profession "to survive."

From Barron's

This year has already tested investors with abrupt crash courses on new Anthropic tools that might doom — or complement — software companies, the legal profession, payment systems, banks, cybersecurity and more.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

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