professional
Americanadjective
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following an occupation as a means of livelihood or for gain.
a professional builder.
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of, relating to, or connected with a profession.
professional studies.
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appropriate to a profession.
professional objectivity.
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engaged in one of the learned professions.
A lawyer is a professional person.
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following as a business an occupation ordinarily engaged in as a pastime.
a professional golfer.
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making a business or constant practice of something not properly to be regarded as a business.
“A salesman,” he said, “is a professional optimist.”
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undertaken or engaged in as a means of livelihood or for gain.
professional baseball.
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of or for a professional person or their place of business or work.
a professional apartment; professional equipment.
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done by an expert.
professional car repairs.
noun
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professionals
plural
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a person who belongs to one of the professions, especially one of the learned professions.
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a person who earns a living in a sport or other occupation frequently engaged in by amateurs.
a golf professional.
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an expert player, as of golf or tennis, serving as a teacher, consultant, performer, or contestant; pro.
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a person who is expert at some kind of work.
You can tell by her comments that this editor is a real professional.
adjective
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of, relating to, suitable for, or engaged in as a profession
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engaging in an activity for gain or as a means of livelihood
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extremely competent in a job, etc
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(of a piece of work or anything performed) produced with competence or skill
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undertaken or performed for gain or by people who are paid
noun
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a person who belongs to or engages in one of the professions
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a person who engages for his livelihood in some activity also pursued by amateurs
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a person who engages in an activity with great competence
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an expert player of a game who gives instruction, esp to members of a club by whom he is hired
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of professional
First recorded in 1740–50; profession + -al 1
Explanation
When an athlete "goes pro," she goes professional–-she is paid for her service rather than doing it on an amateur basis. Other professionals, including doctors and lawyers, are also paid for their work, which, we hope, they conduct in a professional manner. In the 15th century, the word profession referred to vows taken upon entering a religious order. A monk or priest professed his faith. Now, the word suggests competence and expertise and even dignity––"He can't ask me to go out for coffee. I'm a vice president. That just wouldn't be professional!"
Vocabulary lists containing professional
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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:
Before super-middleweight Teasdale's first professional bout, the Rotherham fighter had been featured in national newspapers, books and was being documented by photographers and film-makers.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
And the sentiment in Montreal is much the same as it is in Los Angeles: Public funds should not be used to build professional sports venues.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
"After that I just gave it up, I thought 'I'm not going to be second best to the first me," says Teasdale, whose professional career ended after just five fights over a seven-year period.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
Home Depot devised a strategy of hiring former professional tradespeople en masse—carpenters, plumbers, electricians—to staff stores as their salespeople.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
“I was on the job. I was Mom’s professional taster,” I add proudly.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
"You can't make a car park that's not there, you can't expect people to walk too far either, but there are professionals who spend their time planning and they understand how communities work," he said.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
“My teachers now are my younger professionals that are actually closer to the technology, that are willing to take more chances with the technology. And they’re teaching more experienced people, including myself.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
Whenever legal professionals hear that the investment involves a foreign market, they decline to work with me.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
That’s a boon to professionals looking for virtual assistance with work they already know how to do.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
It remained an educated guess based on logic and circumstantial evidence and was largely ignored by medical professionals.
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
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.
