professional

adjective

pro·fes·sion·al | \ prə-ˈfesh-nəl ,

-ˈfe-shə-nᵊl \

Definition of professional

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : of, relating to, or characteristic of a profession

b : engaged in one of the learned professions

c(1) : characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession

(2) : exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace

2a : participating for gain or livelihood in an activity or field of endeavor often engaged in by amateurs a professional golfer

b : having a particular profession as a permanent career a professional soldier

c : engaged in by persons receiving financial return professional football

3 : following a line of conduct as though it were a profession a professional patriot

professional

noun

Definition of professional (Entry 2 of 2)

: one that is professional especially : one that engages in a pursuit or activity professionally

Other Words from professional More Example Sentences Learn More about professional

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Examples of professional in a Sentence

Adjective

Do you have any professional experience? You should seek professional advice. a golfer who recently turned professional I was impressed by the calm and professional way she handled the crisis. The presentation was very professional.

Noun

The bathtub was installed by a professional. The tournament is open to both amateurs and professionals. a golfer who recently became a professional She handled the situation like a professional.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

The billionaire owns the Mumbai Indians professional cricket team. — Fortune, "8 Things to Know About Mukesh Ambani, Asia's Newest Richest Man," 13 July 2018 Sometimes as a professional athlete, people try to define you by your last game or your statistics. — Abby Haglage, refinery29.com, "4 Black Girls With Big Dreams & The 4 Women Living Them," 13 July 2018 Manchester United, a professional soccer team in Britain with fans around the globe, has invited them to a game. — John Bacon, ajc, "WATCH: Video shows rescued Thai soccer players flashing victory sign from hospital beds," 12 July 2018 Musical artist Tim Atwood has a message for professional athletes who want to kneel for the national anthem. — Julius Young, Fox News, "Country music star Tim Atwood thinks NFL players should stand for anthem: 'That's what the country is about'," 12 July 2018 The week-long corporate mixer, punctuated by lectures from royalty, politicians and professional athletes, is organized by the investment bank Allen & Co. and is aimed at stoking future mergers and the advisory fees that go with them. — NBC News, "Wine and Wimbledon: The personal touch in courting corporate mergers," 10 July 2018 Kervick said Borgia’s intent is to create a venue that can host national, regional and state amateur tournaments as well as attract minor league professional teams. — Gregory B. Hladky, Courant Community, "A Long Island Developer Wants To Build A $200 Million Sports Complex In Windsor Locks," 9 July 2018 There is a great deal of debate about the actual economic benefits that professional sports teams bring to local economies. — Alex Shephard, The New Republic, "How important was LeBron James to Cleveland’s economy?," 2 July 2018 But Crimea was not accustomed to fielding eight professional teams. — Jeré Longman, New York Times, "Stuck in Soccer Limbo, in the Shadow of the World Cup," 2 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Some financial professionals may not be able to offer certain services based on what their company allows or doesn’t allow. — Peter Dunn, USA TODAY, "Pete the Planner: Has your financial adviser failed you? 3 ways to let them know it," 13 July 2018 Mojo Hydration is a practice where a medical professional administers IV therapy for health and beauty reasons. — Zahria Rogers, The Courier-Journal, "Concierge IV hydration therapy service seeks to rehydrate Louisville," 12 July 2018 Some financial professionals may not be able to offer certain services based on what their company allows or doesn’t allow. — Peter Dunn, Indianapolis Star, "Pete the Planner: Breaking up with a financial adviser doesn't need to be painful," 11 July 2018 In a world where anyone can buy name-brand, quality beauty products (or damn good dupes), having the time, connections, and cash to see the best quasi-medical skin-care professionals instead is the ultimate beauty status symbol. — Jessica Teas, The Cut, "The Big Lie of #NoMakeup," 9 July 2018 No breakdown of market trading by investor class is available, but a couple of factors indicate professionals are in the lead. — Shen Hong, WSJ, "This Year’s Selloff in Chinese Markets Isn’t Like 2015. It Looks Worse.," 6 July 2018 At the heartrending gathering for Hiaasen, friends and colleagues lauded him as a dedicated professional who was committed to the craft of journalism and loved mentoring the next generation of reporters. — David Mcfadden, BostonGlobe.com, "Newspaper shooter sent ‘kill’ letter before attack, police say," 3 July 2018 At the heartrending gathering for Hiaasen, friends and colleagues lauded him as a dedicated professional who was committed to the craft of journalism and loved mentoring the next generation of reporters. — David Mcfadden, The Seattle Times, "Overflow crowd gathers to honor slain Maryland journalist," 2 July 2018 While that statistic is encouraging, nonwhite architecture professionals are 25 percent more likely to stop pursuing licensure. — Diana Budds, Curbed, "Diversity in architecture is improving—sort of," 25 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'professional.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.