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Origin and history of profess

profess(v.)

early 14c., professen, "to take a vow" (in a religious order), a back-formation from profession or else from Medieval Latin professare, from professus "avowed," literally "having declared publicly," past participle of Latin profiteri "declare openly, testify voluntarily, acknowledge, make public statement of," from pro- "forth" (from PIE root *per- (1) "forward") + fateri (past participle fassus) "acknowledge, confess" (akin to fari "to speak," from PIE root *bha- (2) "to speak, tell, say").

The meaning "declare openly" is recorded from 1520s, "a direct borrowing of the sense from Latin" [Barnhart]. Related: Professed; professing.

profess

also from early 14c.

Entries linking to profess

professed(adj.)

"openly declared, self-acknowledged," 1560s, past-participle adjective from profess. It was used earlier in a more specific sense of "having taken vows of a religious order" (late 14c.). Related: Professedly.

profession(n.)

c. 1200, professioun, "vows taken upon entering a religious order," from Old French profession (12c.) and directly from Latin professionem (nominative professio) "public declaration," noun of action from past-participle stem of profiteri "declare openly" (see profess).

The meaning "any solemn declaration" is from mid-14c. Meaning "occupation one professes to be skilled in, a calling" is from early 15c.; meaning "body of persons engaged in some occupation" is from 1610; as a euphemism for "prostitution" (compare oldest profession) it is recorded from 1888.

Formerly theology, law, and medicine were specifically known as the professions; but, as the applications of science and learning are extended to other departments of affairs, other vocations also receive the name. The word implies professed attainments in special knowledge, as distinguished from mere skill; a practical dealing with affairs, as distinguished from mere study or investigation; and an application of such knowledge to uses for others as a vocation, as distinguished from its pursuit for one's own purposes. In professions strictly so called a preliminary examination as to qualifications is usually demanded by law or usage, and a license or other official authority founded thereon required. [Century Dictionary]
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professor
late 14c., professour, "one who teaches a branch of knowledge," especially in a university, from Old French professeur (14c.) and directly from Latin professor "person who professes to be an expert in some art or science; teacher of highest rank," agent noun from profiteri "lay c
pretend
late 14c., pretenden, "to profess, put forward as a statement or assertion, maintain" (a claim, etc.), "to direct (one's) efforts," from Old French pretendre "to lay claim," from Latin praetendere "stretch in front, spread before, put forward; put forward as an excuse, allege," f
concede
1630s, "to make a concession of, yield up" (transitive), from French concéder or directly from Latin concedere "give way, yield, go away, depart, retire," figuratively "agree, consent, give precedence," from con-, here perhaps an intensive prefix (see con-), + cedere "to go, gran
testify
The Biblical sense of "openly profess one's faith and devotion" is attested from 1520s....
admit
late 14c., admitten, "let in," from Latin admittere "admit, give entrance, allow to enter; grant an audience," of acts, "let be done, allow, permit," from ad "to" (see ad-) + mittere "let go, send" (see mission). The sense of "concede in argument as valid or true" is recorded by
take
Middle English taken, from late Old English tacan "to grip, seize by force, lay hold of," from a Scandinavian source (such as Old Norse taka "take, grasp, lay hold," past tense tok, past participle tekinn; also compare Swedish ta, past participle tagit). This is reconstructed to
confess
late 14c., transitive and intransitive, "make avowal or admission of" (a fault, crime, sin, debt, etc.), from Old French confesser (transitive and intransitive), from Vulgar Latin *confessare, a frequentative form from Latin confess-, past participle stem of confiteri "to acknowl
declare
mid-14c., declaren, "explain, interpret, make clear;" late 14c., "make known by words, state explicitly, proclaim, announce," from Old French declarer "explain, elucidate," or directly from Latin declarare "make clear, reveal, disclose, announce," from de-, here perhaps an intens
acknowledge
late 15c., "admit or show one's knowledge," a blend of Middle English aknow "admit or show one's knowledge" and Middle English knowlechen "admit, acknowledge" (c. 1200; see knowledge). Middle English aknow is from Old English oncnawan "understand, come to recognize," from on (see
claim
c. 1300, "to call, call out; to ask or demand by virtue of right or authority," from accented stem of Old French clamer "to call, name, describe; claim; complain; declare," from Latin clamare "to cry out, shout, proclaim," from PIE root *kele- (2) "to shout." Related: Claimed; cl

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