pro

«pro» in Mova's school dictionary: a professional: a person paid for a sport or job — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 1 sentence of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

noun (a pro, pros) — informal; preposition/prefix (pro-)

meaning for a pupil

1) (informal) A pro is a professional: a person paid for a sport or job. tree →

2) (informal) A pro is someone very good at something: «You're a pro at this!». tree →

3) Pros are reasons for something: «pros and cons» are reasons for and against. tree →

4) Pro- as a prefix means in favour of: pro-environment. tree →

5) (slang, euphemism) «Pro» can be short for a prostitute; avoid this use. tree →

sense in the lessons

In everyday talk it is a compliment or describes sport (a pro footballer, turn pro). In school writing and debates «pros and cons» are listed before deciding. «Pro» is a clipped short form of «professional». Phrases: «pros and cons», «turn pro», «like a pro».

examples

• She plays tennis like a pro. tree →
• He wants to turn pro when he's older. tree →
• Let's list the pros and cons of having a dog. tree →
• One pro of walking to school is the exercise. tree →
• (informal) You're a real pro at fixing bikes! tree →
• She is pro-recycling. tree →
• The golf pro gave us a lesson. tree →
• Weigh up the pros before you decide. tree →

note

Short (clipped) form of «professional»; plural «pros». Opposite of «pro» in debates: «con» (against). «Pro» as a prefix: pro-; opposite «anti-». Avoid the slang euphemism meaning.

In the corpora

• Lily wins one game and she's "a pro"; she loses five and "the game's broken".

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «pro» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.