1
as in to pretend
to present a false appearance of
professed friendship while secretly plotting revenge
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to declare
to state clearly and strongly
the lonely woman professed her love in a series of letters to the soldier
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to insist
to state as a fact usually forcefully
he professed his innocence to anyone who would listen
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of profess
The titular character survived in the end and professed his love to Mary (Rochelle Aytes).
—
Julia Moore, PEOPLE, 4 May 2026
Even former faces of prestige TV like Jon Hamm and Lena Dunham publicly profess their devotion to Southern Charm and Vanderpump Rules.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 4 May 2026
Vance professes to be ‘obsessed’ with UFO files Trump appears skeptical about the existence of extraterrestrial life.
—Collin Binkley, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2026
Instead of a mutual parting of ways, Howard professes his love for Nancy and proposes that the two be together.
—Brande Victorian, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for profess
Julia Moore, PEOPLE, 4 May 2026
Even former faces of prestige TV like Jon Hamm and Lena Dunham publicly profess their devotion to Southern Charm and Vanderpump Rules.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 4 May 2026
Vance professes to be ‘obsessed’ with UFO files Trump appears skeptical about the existence of extraterrestrial life.
—Collin Binkley, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2026
Instead of a mutual parting of ways, Howard professes his love for Nancy and proposes that the two be together.
—Brande Victorian, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for profess
Recent Examples of Synonyms for profess
Verb
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The two initially make a deal where Hannah exchanges free tutoring lessons for Garrett pretending to be her boyfriend, making her crush jealous.—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
17 May 2026
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With the war’s turbulence on the economy more prevalent and the internet now throttled, Russians no longer have the luxury of pretending the war in Ukraine isn’t happening.—
Daniel DePetris,
Twin Cities,
15 May 2026
Verb
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With very few exceptions, an end was declared, not only to empires, but also to city-states, duchies, principalities, emirates, sultanates, caliphates, khanates, agencies, princely states, colonies, suzerains, dependencies, mandates, tributaries, condominia and protectorates.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
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The World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern over an outbreak of a rare Ebola virus in central Africa.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
18 May 2026
Verb
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Real change begins when communities insist on solutions that restore dignity, stability, and hope rather than pushing people out of sight.—
Shianne LeClaire,
Hartford Courant,
17 May 2026
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Maybe, for those who knew his story, this was a high school marker for when college recruiters insisted Jackson was a receiver at the next level.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
16 May 2026
Verb
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Meanwhile, Scott, the attorney, also said Thursday that Williamson assumed, based on her conversations with McCluskie, that McCluskie had spoken to Becerra about the concept of the money transfer.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
15 May 2026
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Recommended Stories That’s assuming there’s actually enough of it accessible on the moon to be profitably extracted.—
Robin George Andrews,
Scientific American,
14 May 2026
Verb
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Silvia and Guojun were now attempting to assert custody rights over the infant there, along with the newborns whom surrogates had recently birthed in Georgia and Virginia.—
Ava Kofman,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
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As Sportico explained, class counsel Steve Berman and Jeffrey Kessler assert multimedia rights companies including Learfield, Playfly Sports and JMI Sports—and third-party brand sponsors including banks, apparel companies, airlines and car dealerships—aren’t associated entities.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
11 May 2026
Verb
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The state alleges Netflix then shared or disclosed portions of that information to commercial data brokers and advertising technology firms, allowing the data to be combined with information collected elsewhere online to create detailed consumer profiles.—
Claire Carter,
The Washington Examiner,
11 May 2026
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Attorneys representing the family of Florida State University shooting victim Tiru Chabba have filed a federal lawsuit against OpenAI and its artificial intelligence platform ChatGPT, alleging that the company could have done more to prevent the shooting.—
ByDeena Zaru,
ABC News,
11 May 2026
Verb
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Dick Clark Productions and Sony Pictures Television’s 19 Entertainment were behind the series, which featured weekly dance challenges intended to simulate the realities of a successful dance career.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
11 May 2026
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Cutting back the plants severely will simulate late new growth, which will be very susceptible to winter kill.—
Marie Iannotti,
The Spruce,
9 May 2026
Verb
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Again, the show is insistent on proclaiming Val’s greatness without putting in the work.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
11 May 2026
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The ruling, upheld by the state Supreme Court, prompted the mayor, who proclaimed at the time that failure was not an option, to pursue other options to make the project’s tall buildings possible.—
Jennifer Van Grove,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Profess.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/profess. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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