Meaning & use
professor
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Meanings
nouncountable
a senior teacher at a college or university, often of the highest rank
Grammar: Countable; used with a name or title: Professor Smith, or a professor of history.
Patterns
- a professor of something
- Professor + name
- a professor at a university
She became a professor of physics at the age of 35.
Professor Johnson will give the opening lecture.
He is a professor at a small liberal arts college.
nouncountableAmericaninformal
any college or university teacher, especially in American English
Grammar: In informal American use, students may call any instructor 'professor' even if the person is not a full professor.
Patterns
- my professor
- ask a professor
I need to ask my professor for an extension on the paper.
The professor handed back our exams today.
She's a professor in the history department.
Word forms
| plural | professors |
|---|
Common combinations
- full professor
- After ten years, he was promoted to full professor.
- associate professor
- She is an associate professor of biology.
- professor of economics
- He is a professor of economics at Harvard.
- visiting professor
- The university hosted a visiting professor from Japan.
- emeritus professor
- Even after retirement, he retains the title of emeritus professor.
Synonyms and how they differ
- lecturer
- A lecturer teaches at a university but may not have the senior rank or research expectations of a professor.
- instructor
- A more general term for a teacher, often used for non-permanent or lower-ranked teaching staff.
- academic
- A broader word for anyone who works in higher education or research, not just teaching staff.
Opposites
Word family
- professorial adjective
- relating to a professor or their manner
- professoriate noun
- the body of professors at a university
- professorship noun
- the position or rank of a professor
Commonly confused: professor or teacher?
professor vs teacher
Teacher is the general word for anyone who teaches, especially in school. Professor is only for college or university teachers, usually of senior rank.
Practice
In American English, students often call any college teacher ______, even if they are not a full professor.
Choose one answer.
In American usage, 'professor' is commonly used for any college teacher. 'Teacher' is too general and usually refers to school-level teaching.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “professor”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.