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profession

noun
pro·​fes·​sion | \ prə-ˈfe-shən How to pronounce profession (audio) \

Definition of profession

1 : the act of taking the vows of a religious community
2 : an act of openly declaring or publicly claiming a belief, faith, or opinion : protestation
3 : an avowed religious faith
4a : a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation
b : a principal calling, vocation, or employment
c : the whole body of persons engaged in a calling
Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about profession

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Examples of profession in a Sentence

The doctor talked to students who are thinking about entering the profession. Most professions in the medical field require years of training. Their daughter recently became a member of the medical profession.
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Recent Examples on the Web

 Within that came a movement within the medical profession to develop scientifically based treatment for addiction of all kinds, and that is still going. — Catherine Ho, SFChronicle.com, "End of an era in Haight-Ashbury: Original free clinic closes its doors," 3 Aug. 2019 There's evidence, however, that high turnover in medical profession isn't great for patient care. — Lydia Depillis, CNN, "What's behind the US government's massive spending on temp workers," 2 Aug. 2019 Our society, our drug companies and medical profession aren’t addressing all this suffering that happens as people grow old. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Can a single pill keep you healthy to 100?," 10 July 2019 There wasn’t a great deal known about the disorder, but Penny fit the profile: female, white, middle class, with a job in the medical profession. — Andrea Dunlop, Marie Claire, "Read an Excerpt from Andrea Dunlop's New Novel About Munchausen By Proxy," 2 July 2019 By the late 1960s, the medical profession responded with calls for more access to legal abortions. — Mike Cason | Mcason@al.com, al.com, "When abortion was a risky misdemeanor: Alabama before Roe v. Wade," 26 June 2019 Joyeux, who was nearly disbarred from the medical profession for his views against vaccination, launched a campaign against Infanrix hexa—the six-in-one children’s vaccine—in 2016. — Alex Whiting, Quartz, "How France is convincing its citizens to get vaccinated," 26 June 2019 But mistrust of the medical profession is especially a hurdle to overcome when treating black Americans. — NBC News, "How black pharmacists are closing the cultural gap in health care," 25 June 2019 The burden that the medical profession places upon disabled women to abort for non-medical reasons is also deserving of discussion. — Audrey Farley, Longreads, "We Still Don’t Know How to Navigate the Cultural Legacy of Eugenics," 20 June 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'profession.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of profession

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for profession

Middle English professioun, from Anglo-French profession, from Late Latin & Latin; Late Latin profession-, professio, from Latin, public declaration, from profitēri

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More Definitions for profession

profession

noun
How to pronounce profession (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of profession

: a type of job that requires special education, training, or skill
: the people who work in a particular profession
formal : the act of declaring or saying something openly

See the full definition for profession in the English Language Learners Dictionary

profession

noun
pro·​fes·​sion | \ prə-ˈfe-shən How to pronounce profession (audio) \

Kids Definition of profession

1 : an occupation (as medicine, law, or teaching) that is not mechanical or agricultural and that requires special education
2 : an act of publicly declaring or claiming a profession of religious faith
3 : the people working in an occupation

profession

noun
pro·​fes·​sion | \ prə-ˈfesh-ən How to pronounce profession (audio) \

Medical Definition of profession

1 : a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation
2 : the whole body of persons engaged in a calling

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