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profane

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verb

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as in to misuse
to put to a bad or improper use profaned his considerable acting talents by appearing in some wretched movies

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of profane
Adjective
The season-opening 33-8 loss at Indianapolis did not trigger any loud, profane, chair-throwing reaction from McDaniel. Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2025 Gilliam is not contesting states' rights to ban profane, sexualized or vulgar plates. Angele Latham, The Tennessean, 3 Sep. 2025
Verb
Her husband, the exuberant and often profane former Dodgers manager who won two World Series championships, died Jan. 7 at 93. Steve Marble, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2021 The narrative is that of a leader who has experienced vilification at the hands of enemies who are both secular (and thus profane) and intensely demonic. Federico Finchelstein, The New Republic, 3 Nov. 2020 See All Example Sentences for profane
Recent Examples of Synonyms for profane
Adjective
  • This temporal displacement frees Pynchon to offer sidelong commentary on contemporary politics without getting trapped in the flux of the present or being too on the nose.
    Jack Denton, Vulture, 6 Oct. 2025
  • To practice ‘future temporal focused’ networking, create a timetable and ask yourself key questions.
    Sarah Maokosy, Fortune, 4 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • This culture is incredibly cruel, and things have gotten really obscene.
    Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 10 Oct. 2025
  • In 2009, former Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams was fined $250,000 for making an obscene gesture toward a Buffalo Bills fan.
    Cole Sullivan, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Files were easily lost or corrupted.
    Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 8 Oct. 2025
  • As a model named Carl, stuck in a relationship corrupted by microcelebrity and Instagram view counts, Dickinson ticks with exasperation and sarcastic logic, his jaw clenched, his eyes wide and staring.
    Carrie Battan, Vulture, 6 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Just last week, one case was dismissed by a federal judge who said former Bojangles employees failed to show their data was misused as a result of the breach.
    Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 7 Oct. 2025
  • Now, new unsealed documents reveal the FBI was looking into whether the cybersecurity researcher, who lived in Bloomington and Carmel, misused federal research grants.
    Cate Charron, IndyStar, 7 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The president of the European Commission highlighted that in just the last two weeks, Russian drones and warplanes have violated the airspace of six European nations, scrambling jets, grounding commercial flights and posing a direct threat to EU citizens.
    Caitlin McFall, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2025
  • Lawsuits filed in recent days claim the federal government is overstepping its authority and violating constitutional protections.
    Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Shikaki, who has been tracking Palestinian public opinion for decades, said Barghouti is by far the most popular Palestinian leader and the only secular nationalist capable of winning elections.
    Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 8 Oct. 2025
  • The story is based on the true case of the abduction in Israel of a seven-year-old Jewish boy, Yossele Schumacher, by his ultra-Orthodox grandfather in the early 1960s, to prevent him from being raised as a secular Jew by his parents.
    Annika Pham, Variety, 6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • A day before a shooter killed four people and set fire to a church in Michigan, students at a football game in Colorado chanted vulgar anti-Mormon slurs against the same religious organization.
    Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
  • Colorado has condemned a vulgar chant its fans directed at BYU during its football team’s 24-21 loss Saturday at Folsom Field.
    David Ubben, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Douglass advises against starting from the assumption that people arrive somewhere and immediately begin to degrade the environment.
    Ari Daniel, NPR, 8 Oct. 2025
  • This process degrades the mirrors' reflectivity and clarity over time, so technicians regularly recoat and polish them to ensure the best precision.
    Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 6 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Profane.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/profane. Accessed 14 Oct. 2025.

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