profound
Americanadjective
-
penetrating or entering deeply into subjects of thought or knowledge; having deep insight or understanding.
a profound thinker.
- Antonyms:
- superficial, shallow
-
originating in or penetrating to the depths of one's being: profound grief.
-
being or going far beneath what is superficial, external, or obvious.
profound insight.
-
of deep meaning; of great and broadly inclusive significance.
a profound book.
-
pervasive or intense; thorough; complete.
a profound silence.
-
extending, situated, or originating far down, or far beneath the surface.
the profound depths of the ocean.
-
bending or passing far downward; low.
a profound bow.
adjective
-
penetrating deeply into subjects or ideas
a profound mind
-
showing or requiring great knowledge or understanding
a profound treatise
-
situated at or extending to a great depth
-
reaching to or stemming from the depths of one's nature
profound regret
-
intense or absolute
profound silence
-
thoroughgoing; extensive
profound changes
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of profound
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin profundus “deep, vast,” equivalent to pro- pro- 1 + fundus “bottom” ( see found 1)
Explanation
When you need a word that's deeper than "deep," consider profound. A philosopher is likely to make many profound pronouncements. Profundus literally means "deep" in Latin, and profound had the same meaning when it entered English in the 14th century. But even then, it also meant "figuratively deep" — that is, very great or intense: "The new laws have had a profound impact." Of people, it means "very knowledgeable or insightful," but sometimes when a person tries to sound profound, they're really just giving you superficial knowledge dressed up with big words.
Vocabulary lists containing profound
Essential Academic Vocabulary for High School Students, List 1
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"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe
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List 4
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
She expresses profound love for the two children she has while regretting that she was forced to become a mother before she could give those children the life she believed they deserved.
From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026
AI will have a profound effect on the global economy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Such an event would mark a profound change in a region that has maintained extensive seasonal ice cover for millennia.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026
"With profound grief and sorrow, I urge the authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and take strict action against anyone found responsible so that such tragedies can be prevented in the future," he said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
In addition to increasing Americans’ fears, World War II had a profound effect upon our family.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
But Jarecki seems to want more, something deeper and profounder.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 19, 2018
“And it’s having a much profounder effect than I conceived could happen.”
From New York Times ● Sep. 3, 2011
He deserves such tributes, but there is a profounder, truer explanation for the wonder he excites.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 17, 2010
Or, as Frank notes while dealing with a particularly difficult couple in Independence Day, “a profounder text runs beneath all realty decisions.”
From Newsweek
No writer has shown a profounder reverence for human affection.
From The Roman Poets of the Republic by W. Y. Sellar
The cameraphone is enacting the profoundest change to our experience of art in a century — and yet we still talk about photography with language as old as the Kodak Colorsnap.
From New York Times ● Dec. 5, 2019
David Bowman would turn out to one of the most isolated people I’ve ever known—isolated on the profoundest levels by a certain traumatic displacement from ordinary human consolation.
From The New Yorker ● Jan. 2, 2019
The 95-51 score against Oklahoma that ensued became the profoundest romp in all the Final Fours.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 31, 2018
That might sound painfully earnest, but the Greeks understood that our profoundest pleasures aren’t superficial.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 26, 2017
It was an odd manuscript; in the midst of the profoundest personal tragedy, sinking into economic ruin, he wrote brilliantly funny columns.
From "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffin
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
