professor

[pruh-fes-er]

noun

1. a teacher of the highest academic rank in a college or university, who has been awarded the title Professor in a particular branch of learning; a full professor.

   a professor of Spanish literature.

2. any teacher who has the rank of professor, associate professor, or assistant professor.

3. a teacher.

4. an instructor in some art or skilled sport.

   a professor of singing; a professor of boxing.

5. a person who professes or declares particular sentiments, beliefs, etc.

professor

/ prəˈfɛsə, ˌprɒfɪˈsɔːrɪəl /

noun

1. the principal lecturer or teacher in a field of learning at a university or college; a holder of a university chair

2. any teacher in a university or college See also associate professor assistant professor full professor

3. a person who claims skill and instructs others in some sport, occupation, etc

4. a person who professes his opinions, beliefs, etc

Other Word Forms

• professorial adjective
• professorialism noun
• professorially adverb
• nonprofessorial adjective
• nonprofessorially adverb
• pseudoprofessorial adjective
• subprofessor noun
• unprofessorial adjective
• unprofessorially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of professor¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English from Medieval Latin prōfessor “one who has taken the vows of a religious order,” Latin: “a public lecturer,” equivalent to prō- pro- ¹ + -fet-, combining form of fatērī “to acknowledge, declare” + -tor -tor, with tt becoming ss

Word History and Origins

Origin of professor¹

C14: from Medieval Latin: one who has made his profession in a religious order, from Latin: a public teacher; see _profess

Example Sentences

Still, because of its climate, California has plenty of experience dealing with such extremes, said Jay Lund, professor emeritus of civil and environmental engineering at UC Davis.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“This circular process of evaluation draws the testing and remediation out for months,” said Andrew Whelton, a professor of civil, environmental and ecological engineering at Purdue University.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Administrators rely too heavily on student reviews when deciding whether to retain adjuncts, assistant professors and even associates.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Larry Barlow, assistant professor of marriage and family therapy at Capella University, recounts a personal episode that brought him and his wife up short.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Choi is now an assistant professor at the Center for Neuroimmunology and Glial Biology, Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• assistant 
• educator 
• faculty member www.thesaurus.com
• fellow 
• instructor 
• lecturer 
• principal 
• teacher 
• tutor