1
as in technical
having or showing trained ability in a particular field of knowledge
Many of the applicants lacked the professional experience the job required. She had always dreamed of becoming a professional boxer.
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2
as in civil
in a serious and polite manner
She found his presentation informative and his delivery quite professional. Employees were expected to act in a professional manner when dealing with potential customers.
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as in specialist
a person with a high level of knowledge or skill in a field
If you want the job done right, you really should hire a professional.
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of professional
Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
Bendoym may have to defend herself before her professional peers.
—Steve Bousquet, Sun Sentinel, 28 Feb. 2026
Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2026
Turn to a professional to eradicate the pests.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for professional
Adjective
Like any professional baseball team as the winter months start to thaw, the Snowballs have spent the past couple of weeks in spring training.
—Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
Bendoym may have to defend herself before her professional peers.
—Steve Bousquet, Sun Sentinel, 28 Feb. 2026
Noun
Talk with a professional about this situation and your life in general, and work to come to an understanding of what keeps you interested in someone who is no longer interested in you.
—Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2026
Turn to a professional to eradicate the pests.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for professional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for professional
Adjective
-
The desire for more speed also demonstrated some of the internal clumsiness Weiss and her close inner circle have lamented on the technical side.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Most years, these amendments are minor and introduce only small technical changes to some of the program’s laws.—
Tom Margenau,
Dallas Morning News,
1 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
When the Assad regime in nearby Syria collapsed in late 2024, its security forces had been hollowed out – and its economy ravaged – by years of civil conflict.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
1 Mar. 2026
-
Numerous airlines canceled international flights to Dubai through the weekend, as India’s civil aviation agency designated much of the Middle East — including skies above Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon — as a high-security risk zone at all altitudes.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Those quotes were used to provide context and avoid downplaying the role of slavery in the Confederate rebellion, according to a former Harpers Ferry media specialist who inserted them.—
Karin Brulliard,
Arkansas Online,
3 Mar. 2026
-
Declan Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, lowa, who was posthumously promoted from specialist.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
3 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Every industry now faces some form of scarcity – skilled labor, components, energy, fabrication capacity, or regulatory throughput.—
Travis Edmonds,
Fortune,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Any of these pieces of equipment in the hands of a skilled operator should be able to make quick work of an average-sized stump.—
Daniel Scott,
Better Homes & Gardens,
5 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The pompous clergyman enters the life of the Bennet family, his distant cousins, with the assumption that, given his respectable position and benefactor, Lady Catherine De Bourgh, one of those daughters would be happy to marry him.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
26 Feb. 2026
-
The blue collar career, once a respectable path to home ownership and a stable family income, became something to escape rather than aspire to.—
Gerald Bradshaw,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Jack Horner, a renowned paleontologist who worked as a consultant on all seven films in the Jurassic Park franchise, is no longer employed as a lecturer at Chapman University, following his name appearing several times in the Epstein files.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Political consultant Gabe Rivas has 10%.—
Rachel Royster
Updated March 3,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Even now, only expert divers with specialized equipment can access and work in those caves.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
1 Mar. 2026
-
In less than 10 years, the MAAC has grown from a single building into a 30-acre training campus with more than 40 buildings, structures and specialized training areas.—
Post-Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Bainbridge’s earlier novels often seem to have a similarly businesslike attitude.—
Christopher Tayler,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Mike Macdonald is taking a businesslike approach to Seattle’s NFC championship game showdown Sunday with Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams.—
Mike Griffith,
AJC.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Professional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/professional. Accessed 8 Mar. 2026.
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