Primary
''profound'' ▫ᴱᴺ｜Definition｜1st｜20260320120320-00-⌔
profound - Wiktionary, the free dictionary
English
Adjective
profound (comparative more profound, superlative most profound)
- Descending far below the surface; opening or reaching to great depth; deep.
- ✤ A gulf profound as that Serbonian bog1
- Very deep; very serious.
- Intellectually deep; entering far into subjects; reaching to the bottom of a matter, or of a branch of learning; thorough.
- ✤ a profound investigation
- ✤ a profound scholar
- ✤ * profound wisdom*
- ✤ Where no motives of interest or pride intervene, none can equal them for profound and philosophical views of society, ….2
- ✤ The most superficial phenomena are sometimes the most profound. Let us begin our analysis of[bourgeois] society … with the appearance of the clothes its members wore ….3
- Characterized by intensity; deeply felt; pervading.
- ✤ How now! which of your hips has the most profound sciatica?4
- ✤ Of the profound corruption of this class there can be no doubt.5
- ✤ It’s probably one of the reasons the Shamima Begum case is having such a profound impact; one-dimensional stereotypes about Muslim women already run so deep.6
- ✤ I visited the wreckage at Ladbroke Grove, Hatfield. Potters Bar and Heck, and the experiences had a profound effect on me - especially Ladbroke Grove.7
- Bending low, exhibiting or expressing deep humility; lowly; submissive.
Noun
profound (uncountable)
- (obsolete) The deep; the sea; the ocean.
- ✤ God, in the fathomlesse profound/Hath all his choice Commanders drown’d.10
- (obsolete) An abyss.
- ✤ […] if some other place,/From your dominion won, th’ Ethereal King/Possesses lately, thither to arrive/travel this profound. Direct my course […]11
Verb
profound (third-person singular simple present profounds, present participle profounding, simple past and past participle profounded)
- (obsolete) To cause to sink deeply; to cause to dive or penetrate far down.
- (obsolete) To dive deeply; to penetrate.
- ✤ But no man is likely to profound tbe Ocean of that Doctrine12
Etymology
From Middle English profound, profounde, from Anglo-Norman profound, from Old French profont, profonde, from Latin profundus (“deep, profound”), from prō + fundus (“bottom; foundation”).
Pronunciation
Printed 2026-06-28.
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Link to original Footnotes
1667, John Milton, “”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a] nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a] nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC: ↩
1819, Washington Irving, The Sketch Book, English Writers on America: ↩
1975, Eric Hobsbawm, The Age of Capital. 1848-1875, published 1995, page 270: ↩
c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Measure for Measure”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC,: ↩
1860, Henry Hart Milman, History of Latin Christianity: including that of the popes to the pontificate of Nicholas V.: ↩
2019, Shelina Janmohamed, “Long before Shamima Begum, Muslim women were targets”, in Guardian : ↩
2023 September 20, Nigel Harris, “Comment Special: And it’s goodbye from me…”, in RAIL, number 992, page 3: ↩
1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC: ↩
a. 1662, Brian Duppa, Holy Rules and Helps to Devotion, published 1683: ↩
1638, George Sandys, A Paraphrase vpon the Divine Poems, Exodvs 15: ↩
1667, John Milton, “Book II”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a] nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a] nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC, lines 976-980: ↩
1650, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica: […], 2nd edition, London: […] A[braham] Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, […], →OCLC: ↩
Secondary
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