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
Quenneville likes the comparison to Perry, professing an affinity for a player who was, for years, an adversarial nuisance.
—
Eric Stephens, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Yet Emmanwori has professed an admiration for Fred Warner, an All-Pro linebacker who was a hybrid safety/linebacker at Brigham Young and converted to a sideline-to-sideline linebacker for the 49ers.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 4 Feb. 2026
Maurice grows steadily more intimate with a friend, Clive, trading books and letters with him over vacation, until Clive professes his love.
—Bekah Waalkes, The Atlantic, 3 Feb. 2026
Murph the Surf and two of his boys were collared two days later, professing that the goods were gone.
—Guy Martin, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for profess
Eric Stephens, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Yet Emmanwori has professed an admiration for Fred Warner, an All-Pro linebacker who was a hybrid safety/linebacker at Brigham Young and converted to a sideline-to-sideline linebacker for the 49ers.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 4 Feb. 2026
Maurice grows steadily more intimate with a friend, Clive, trading books and letters with him over vacation, until Clive professes his love.
—Bekah Waalkes, The Atlantic, 3 Feb. 2026
Murph the Surf and two of his boys were collared two days later, professing that the goods were gone.
—Guy Martin, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for profess
Recent Examples of Synonyms for profess
Verb
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There wouldn’t have been any point to our pretending not to be Jewish, because everybody thought of us as Jewish and that would never change.—
Nicholas Lemann,
New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Custom Curtains When Windows Misbehave Standard sizes pretend every window is the same height, width, and position.—
Maria Williams,
Ascend Agency,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Massachusetts state of emergency The governor said declaring a state of emergency allows the state to respond quickly and deploy resources during the storm.—
Matt Schooley,
CBS News,
22 Feb. 2026
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The president fuming and calling the decision a disgrace, has now turned to a provision in the law never before used by a president, to declare a new across the board 15 percent tariff on all nations.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Uludag denied the accusations during questioning, insisting that his posts were legitimate criticism made in his capacity as a judiciary reporter, according to court documents published by Cumhuriyet newspaper.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
21 Feb. 2026
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The French insisted that their routine had a high level of difficulty and that they had been rewarded justly.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But as Burnett’s television empire grew, other executive producers like Tom Shelly and Doug McCallie assumed the role of overseeing the day-to-day filming logistics, with Burnett still signing off on key creative elements.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Feb. 2026
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Some people assume any gold purchase is automatically reported to the government.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The Daily News has a duty to verify facts asserted in op-eds.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
16 Feb. 2026
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In a January 16 court filing supporting criminal charges against the two men, the DOJ asserted Aljorna was the one driving the vehicle.—
Emma Tucker,
CNN Money,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Thousands of immigrants are currently being detained in large detention centers where detainees, lawyers and activists have alleged abuse and poor conditions.—
Zoe Sottile,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
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Bally’s ultimately scrapped the minority requirements in April 2025 and refiled the IPO following federal lawsuits alleging the offering discriminated against white men.—
Alice Yin,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The team now plans to develop more advanced models, including organoids that simulate chronic spinal cord injuries with long-standing scar tissue.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Feb. 2026
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Relational commitments are simulated without persistence.—
Deb Roy,
The Atlantic,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Brian Wilson was back, as the promotional campaign around 15 Big Ones excitedly proclaimed, and that meant the rockin’ good times were here to stay.—
Ben Cardew,
Pitchfork,
14 Feb. 2026
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The fences around the tombstones and the tombstones themselves were all of a piece, yet each one also proclaimed its difference from the other.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Profess.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/profess. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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