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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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
- interprofessional adjective
- professionally adverb
- pseudoprofessional adjective
Etymology
Origin of professional
First recorded in 1740–50; profession + -al 1
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.
She remembers a time when she "wasn't going a day" without speaking to the local authority, schools or professionals.
From BBC
The North Koreans’ physical advantage erodes over time, as top senior national teams eventually get populated with professionals training year-round.
The pressure of sending a missive to the one writer you had lived your entire professional life wishing you could ever be as good as nearly derailed the whole enterprise.
From Los Angeles Times
Before that athletics had been largely amateur until the 1980s, when athletes were left to generate their own income if they wanted to turn professional.
From BBC
Exercise stands out as a low cost and widely accessible option that also improves physical health, making it appealing to both patients and healthcare professionals.
From Science Daily
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.
