1
as in pretends
to present a false appearance of
professed friendship while secretly plotting revenge
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in declares
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 insists
to state as a fact usually forcefully
he professed his innocence to anyone who would listen
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 professes
Trump often professes his support for farmers.
—
Anthony Pahnke, Fortune, 14 Mar. 2026
The upcoming exhibition's contemporary edge professes the importance of displaying Native American art of the present, to resist the erasure of living, thriving Indigenous American cultures and communities.
—Anya Sesay, jsonline.com, 26 Feb. 2026
In this context, improving pay and addressing disparities will be a formidable undertaking for a mayoral administration that professes a commitment to economic justice.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 5 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
Ongoing diversity problem Each year, Goodell professes a desire to see the NFL employ fair hiring practices that will ensure the league’s head coaching and general manager ranks reflect strong diversity.
—Mike Jones, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
No matter how much people want to blame the departing Matt Nagy, or how Reid professes that the offense has been off just a tick, a significant part of why the Chiefs the last three seasons went 15th, 15th and 21st in scoring has a more holistic cause.
—Kansas City Star, 21 Jan. 2026
Colossal Biosciences professes to have species conservation as its primary mission, but de-extinction technologies could be used for other purposes.
—JSTOR Daily, 13 Nov. 2025
Also, this is the second scene of the season in which a male love interest professes an intense and specific oral fixation with his female partner.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 18 Oct. 2025
Anthony Pahnke, Fortune, 14 Mar. 2026
The upcoming exhibition's contemporary edge professes the importance of displaying Native American art of the present, to resist the erasure of living, thriving Indigenous American cultures and communities.
—Anya Sesay, jsonline.com, 26 Feb. 2026
In this context, improving pay and addressing disparities will be a formidable undertaking for a mayoral administration that professes a commitment to economic justice.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 5 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
Ongoing diversity problem Each year, Goodell professes a desire to see the NFL employ fair hiring practices that will ensure the league’s head coaching and general manager ranks reflect strong diversity.
—Mike Jones, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
No matter how much people want to blame the departing Matt Nagy, or how Reid professes that the offense has been off just a tick, a significant part of why the Chiefs the last three seasons went 15th, 15th and 21st in scoring has a more holistic cause.
—Kansas City Star, 21 Jan. 2026
Colossal Biosciences professes to have species conservation as its primary mission, but de-extinction technologies could be used for other purposes.
—JSTOR Daily, 13 Nov. 2025
Also, this is the second scene of the season in which a male love interest professes an intense and specific oral fixation with his female partner.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 18 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for professes
Verb
-
This team is improved, has a deeper roster, no longer pretends Kris Bryant is a major league player and features more functional pitchers (No, seriously).—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
4 Apr. 2026
-
The narrator of Lerner’s tight, astonishingly trenchant new book pretends to record part of his conversations with his elderly mentor and then uses his memory to write a profile.—
Bethanne Patrick,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Maureen Groppe The arguments are in the history books as Chief Justice John Roberts declares, after slightly more than two hours of oral arguments, that the case has been submitted.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
-
When the government declares, implicitly or explicitly, that people don’t matter, investors should listen.—
Andrew Behar,
Fortune,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Curator argues for replacing—or at least displaying both—while The Boss, beholden to donors and a governing board, insists Old Art stays and New Art must go.—
Michelle F. Solomon,
Miami Herald,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Ulbrich insists he was always convinced that those predictions were wrong.—
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson,
semafor.com,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Of course, that assumes there are any businesses left in California.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
6 Apr. 2026
-
The older consensus assumes Washington would still try to stabilize the situation—escort shipping, surge regional forces, send warnings, hold back from hitting the mainland.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Citrini asserts that the actual shipping volume is higher than reported data as many ships turn off their transponders and are not visible on official tracking systems.—
Yun Li,
CNBC,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Carolyn’s mother asserts that John was responsible for the crash.—
Jeff Wise,
Vulture,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Another alleges that a Washington state medical board policy on Covid misinformation is a violation of doctors’ free speech.—
Theresa Gaffney,
STAT,
3 Apr. 2026
-
The teen then steered his minivan slightly to the right, away from Andrade’s vehicle, in an effort to get around, the indictment alleges.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Through flashbacks and leaps ahead in time, fragmentation and fantasy scenes, the film simulates complexity while endowing its characters with mere crumbs of knowledge and experience.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
7 Apr. 2026
-
Ray tracing is a 3D rendering technology that simulates the behavior of light to produce realistic reflections and lighting effects.—
Will Greenwald,
PC Magazine,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The new Core Ultra 7 270K Plus, which Intel proclaims is its best gaming processor ever, is set to launch for just $299.—
Michael Justin Allen Sexton,
PC Magazine,
11 Mar. 2026
-
And yet the miles of glorious golden sand – one of the only sandy beaches in Sussex – is undeniably delightful, and just nestled behind the dunes is a splendid hotel, The Gallivant, which proclaims that happiness is a place, right here, in Camber.—
Felicity Capon,
TheWeek,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Professes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/professes. Accessed 10 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
