To save this word, you'll need to log in.
\ ˈprō 
\
\ plural pros
Definition of pro
(Entry 1 of 7)
1 : an argument or evidence in affirmation
an appraisal of the pros and cons
2 : the affirmative side or one holding it
pro
adverbDefinition of pro (Entry 2 of 7)
: on the affirmative side : in affirmation
much has been written pro and con
pro
prepositionDefinition of pro (Entry 3 of 7)
: in favor of : for
Definition of pro (Entry 4 of 7)
PRO
abbreviationDefinition of PRO (Entry 5 of 7)
public relations officer
pro-
prefix (1)Definition of pro- (Entry 6 of 7)
1a : earlier than : prior to : before
prothalamion
b : rudimentary : prot- pronucleus
c : precursory
proinsulin
2a : located in front of or at the front of : anterior to
procephalic
b : front : anterior
prothorax
3 : projecting
prognathous
pro-
prefix (2)Definition of pro- (Entry 7 of 7)
1 : taking the place of : substituting for
procathedral procaine
2 : favoring : supporting : championing
pro-American
Examples of pro in a Sentence
Noun
He is a pro when it comes to household repairs.
She handled that tricky situation like an old pro.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The enterprising retailer enlisted George Sheridan, director of the Ohio State Council of Retail Merchants, to work out the pros and cons of moving the holiday up a week.
—
Jeff Suess, Cincinnati.com, "16 states once refused to celebrate Thanksgiving on same date, all because of this Cincinnati icon," 27 Nov. 2019 Appelbaum and the consultants hired by the county presented pros and cons for each of the designs.
—
Peter Krouse, cleveland, "Cuyahoga County Justice Center committee presented with nine design options downtown and elsewhere," 21 Nov. 2019 All cookware surfaces have their pros and cons, and there’s no perfect one-pan-fits-all solution.
—
Paul Stephen, ExpressNews.com, "Your guide to cookware finishes and how to use the pans best," 6 Nov. 2019 Fidelity's Student Debt Tool helps borrowers assess the pros and cons of refinancing, including the impact on Federal loan repayment options.
—
Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press, "Who's dealing with the biggest student loan payments?," 31 Oct. 2019 During the Twitter conversation, many users contributed their list of pros and cons about the three apps.
—
Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz India, "WhatsApp or Slack? India’s startup community debates the best way to interact," 21 Oct. 2019 San Franciscans passionately debated the pros and cons of female bicyclists, discussing everything from sexuality to gender roles to class.
—
Gary Kamiya, SFChronicle.com, "Sex and cycling: How bike craze aroused passions in 1890s San Francisco," 18 Oct. 2019 Each approach has its pros and cons, but both Mozilla and Google have elected to go with DoH in their browsers.
—
Wired, "A Controversial Plan to Encrypt More of the Internet," 9 Oct. 2019 Each project has a detailed description, including a video and a list of pros and cons.
—
San Diego Union-Tribune, "San Diegans can ‘spend’ money on new MTS projects using online survey," 7 Oct. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb Hundreds of people chanted pro-democracy slogans at lunchtime rallies around Hong Kong on Friday.
—
BostonGlobe.com, "One of the laws prescribes sanctions on officials found guilty of human rights abuses and requires an annual review of a special trade status for Hong Kong. The other bans the export of certain nonlethal munitions to Hong Kong police.," 29 Nov. 2019 Police had sealed off the campus after pro-democracy protesters barricaded themselves in, precipitating the most ferocious battle in six months of anti-government unrest.
—
Washington Post, "A rope, tear gas and a fractured foot: How one Hong Kong protester escaped a besieged university," 27 Nov. 2019 Hong Kong authorities hope that a lull in clashes over the weekend during local elections, where pro-democracy candidates scored a landslide victory, can translate into more calm after nearly six months of turmoil.
—
NBC News, "Hong Kong police to enter university as hunt for protesters turns up empty," 27 Nov. 2019 So far, pro-democracy candidates have won 201 out of 452 seats in 18 district councils.
—
Author: Ken Moritsugu And Eileen Ng, Anchorage Daily News, "Pro-democracy candidates advance in key Hong Kong elections," 25 Nov. 2019 The results mark a stunning reversal from the district councils elected four years ago, which included just 126 pro-democracy candidates and almost 300 backers of the establishment.
—
John Bacon, USA TODAY, "Hong Kong elections stunner: What pro-democracy landslide means," 25 Nov. 2019 Voters turned out in record numbers for local and district elections in Hong Kong, overwhelmingly choosing pro-democracy candidates and rejecting pro-government ones.
—
Fortune, "Mayor Femke Halsema’s Amsterdam Gets a Brexit Boost," 25 Nov. 2019 Hong Kong has been embroiled in months of increasingly violent protests, as pro-democracy demonstrators demand the right to elect their own leaders without interference from Beijing.
—
Grace Segers, CBS News, "Trump: "If it weren't for me, Hong Kong would've been obliterated in 14 minutes" by China," 22 Nov. 2019 Salem hosts are not free to voice opinions that contradict the network’s pro-Trump stance.
—
Krista Kafer, The Denver Post, "Kafer: I criticized Trump on Salem’s 710 KNUS and lost my job. That’s bad for democracy.," 18 Nov. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun or adjective Rally organizer Jimmy Sham, who was beaten by hammer-wielding assailants last month, also triumphed, as did a pro-democracy lawmaker who had part of his ear bitten off by an assailant.
—
Author: Ken Moritsugu And Eileen Ng, Anchorage Daily News, "Pro-democracy candidates advance in key Hong Kong elections," 25 Nov. 2019 Pro-democracy rally organizer Jimmy Sham, who was beaten by hammer-wielding assailants last month, also triumphed, as did a pro-democracy lawmaker whose ear was partially bitten off by an assailant.
—
Eileen Ng, SFChronicle.com, "Pro-democracy candidates score win big in Hong Kong elections," 24 Nov. 2019 Hours before the New Economy Forum started on Thursday, US lawmakers passed a bill in support of pro-democracy campaigners in the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong, where protests have gone on for months.
—
Jill Disis, CNN, "The US-China trade war isn't getting better. This week showed why it could get worse," 22 Nov. 2019 Now, the House of Representatives passed a pro-democracy, anti-corruption bill, which is one of many good bills to die in Mitch McConnell's hands in the United States Senate.
—
NBC News, "Read: Democratic debate transcript, November 20, 2019," 20 Nov. 2019 But, in the days and weeks after that deposition, other witnesses put Sondland at the center of the alleged quid-pro-quo scheme, and painted him as someone who had bragged about his direct access to the President.
—
Robert P. Baird, The New Yorker, "The Public Stage of the House Impeachment Inquiry," 18 Nov. 2019 One of the most notable examples is the cover of pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily’s special September supplement on the Hong Kong protests, whose font and layout resembled the title sequences of Evangelion.
—
Vivienne Chow, Quartz, "The magical world of Japanese anime has become the reality of Hong Kong protesters," 14 Nov. 2019 These are the largest pro-democracy protests in a generation.
—
Josh Rogin, The Denver Post, "Rogin: Trump and McConnell are failing Hong Kong," 7 Nov. 2019 The second strategy may be all but inevitable, as the quid-pro-quo evidence piles up.
—
Lynn Yaeger, Vogue, "The Week in Washington: “Lock Him Up!”," 3 Nov. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pro.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Learn More about pro
From the Editors at Merriam-Webster
Pro-Verb: The Complement to the Pronoun
Pro-Verb: The Complement to the Pronoun
The pro-verb, like the pronoun, is a meaningful substitute.
Statistics for pro
Last Updated
1 Dec 2019
Look-up Popularity
Cite this Entry
“Pro.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pro-. Accessed 7 December 2019.
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for pro
pro
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of pro (Entry 2 of 2)
: paid to participate in a sport or activity
: done by people who are paid to play or compete in a sport or activity
See the full definition for pro in the English Language Learners Dictionary
pro
noun\ ˈprō \
\ plural pros
Kids Definition of pro
(Entry 1 of 4)
: an argument or evidence in favor of something
We weighed the pros and cons of wind power.
pro
adverbKids Definition of pro (Entry 2 of 4)
: in favor of something
We heard arguments pro and con.
Kids Definition of pro (Entry 3 of 4)
: professional pro athletes He sank the putt like a pro.
pro-
prefixKids Definition of pro-
: approving : in favor of
Pro
abbreviationMedical Definition of Pro
(Entry 1 of 2)
proline; prolyl
PRO
abbreviationMedical Definition of PRO (Entry 2 of 2)
peer review organization
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on pro
What made you want to look up pro? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Semantic Drift Quiz
- Which of the following was once a synonym for fun?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games
Share pro
Time Traveler for pro
The first known use of pro was in the 15th century
See more words from the same century