pro forma
[ proh fawr-muh ]
/ proʊ ˈfɔr mə /
Save This Word!
adjective
according to form; as a matter of form; for the sake of form.
Commerce. provided in advance of shipment and merely showing the description and quantity of goods shipped without terms of payment: a pro forma invoice.
Accounting. indicating hypothetical financial figures based on previous business operations for estimate purposes: a pro forma balance sheet.
adverb
as a matter of form: Many of the school assignments appear to be done pro forma.
noun plural pro for·ma, pro for·mas.
a pro forma document.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Also pro·for·ma (for defs. 2, 3, 5) .
Origin of pro forma
First recorded in 1565–75; from Latin prō formā
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
British Dictionary definitions for pro forma
pro forma
/ (ˈprəʊ ˈfɔːmə) /
adjective
prescribing a set form or procedure
adverb
performed in a set manner
Word Origin for pro forma
Latin: for form's sake
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for pro forma
pro forma
[ (proh fawr-muh) ]
Doing something pro forma means satisfying only the minimum requirements of a task and doing it in a perfunctory way: “Her welcoming address was strictly pro forma: you could tell that her mind was a million miles away.” From Latin, meaning “by form.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.