pron.1adj.1prep.
/prəʊ/, U.S. /proʊ/ A. n.1
1. † b. A person who supports or votes in favour of some proposal. Obsolete.
a. An argument or consideration in favour of something; reasoning in support of a proposition, thesis, etc. Chiefly in pros and cons (also pros and contras): reasons or arguments for and against something, advantages and disadvantages. Occasionally also pro and contra (also pro and con): argument, debate.In quot. 1809: favourable and adverse fortunes.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > on both sides [preposition]
pro and conc1450
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > [noun] > arguments for or against
armsa1250
pro and conc1450
pros and contrasc1450
pro et contraa1554
pro and contra1570
pros and cons1654
fors and againstsa1817
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > put forward [verb (transitive)] > weigh the arguments
pro and conc1450
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > [noun] > arguments for or against > argument in favour
proc1450
confirmation1553
c1450 (c1405) Mum & Sothsegger (BL Add. 41666) (1936) 300 (MED) I..musid faste, Rehershyng þe reasons of bothe two sides, The pro and þe contra, as clergie askith.
c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn 2577 (MED) Yee mut declare yeur maters to myne intelligence, That I may the bet perseyve al inconvenience, Dout, pro, contra, and anbiguite.
1509 S. Hawes Pastime of Pleasure (1845) vi. 26 Provyng the pro well from the contrary.
1570 J. Foxe Actes & Monumentes (rev. ed.) II. xi. 1756/2 At the last (after much pro and contra) they al consented.
1615 T. Overbury et al. New & Choise Characters with Wife (6th impr.) sig. G7v His whole life is spent in Pro & Contra.
1654 R. Whitlock Ζωοτομία 231 Whole Tomes of Pro's and Con's.
1713 Humble Pleadings for Good Old-way 259 Seeing the pros and cons did run equal so that the determination depended on the moderator's casting vote.
1781 R. B. Sheridan Critic ii. ii The pro and con goes as smart as hits in a fencing-match.
1798 T. Holcroft He's much to blame iv. iv. 58 Lady Jane I should wish to talk a little common sense. Sir George Oh! So should I! I assure you, I am for pros and cons and whys and wherefores.
1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage Adventures Gil Blas III. vii. vi. 86 A..true narrative of all my pros and cons, my ins and outs, since that..separation of ours.
1835 E. FitzGerald Let. July in FitzGerald to his Friends (1979) 18 But then I get a settled home, a good companion, and the other usual pro's that desperate people talk of.
1850 M. Reid Rifle Rangers (1853) xviii. 113 Compared and balanced with as much exactitude as the pros and contras of a miser's bank-book.
1880 Huxley in Life (1900) II. ii. 21 I felt justified in stating all the pros and cons of the case.
a1933 J. A. Thomson Biol. for Everyman (1934) I. xiii. 293 As regards particular insects, such as earwigs, it is often impossible to get a true bill, for there is a ‘con’ to every ‘pro’.
1969 V. E. Frankl in A. Koestler & J. R. Smythies Beyond Reductionism 419 All the protesters are actually anti-testers, they have no ‘pro’, no positive alternative to offer, but they are fighting against, rather than struggling for something.
1987 Jrnl. Amer. Oriental Soc. 107 349/1 It is the intrinsic curiosity among the scholarly elite of Europe and not so much the pros and contras of Jesuit accommodation that stands out in this study.
2005 Washington Times (Nexis) 14 Aug. d1 Williams recommends that students make a list of the pros and cons of their school. If the cons outweigh the pros, a switch probably is a good idea.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > support or backing > [noun] > one who sides or votes in favour of
pro1784
1784 King George III in G. Rose Diaries (1860) I. 61 Mr. Pultney..should have stood amongst the Pros.
1790 M. Cutler Let. 21 Mar. in W. P. Cutler & J. P. Cutler Life, Jrnls. & Corr. M. Cutler (1888) I. 462 The pros are afraid to bring it forward until the return of several members on their side of the question.
2. tally of pro: see tally n.1 1c.
B. adj.1 (attributive).
Favourable, positive, supportive; favourably disposed. Frequently in pro and con: favourable and unfavourable, for and against.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > approval or sanction > [adjective]
goodeOE
agreeable1448
approbatory1548
better1566
favouring1586
approbative1611
applausive1628
pro1650
pleasing1652
favourable1655
approving1702
enthusiastic1777
all for1864
the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > support or encouragement > [adjective]
confortant1450
couraging?1542
advocatory1569
pro1650
encouraging1663
bright1684
undergirding1868
supportive1940
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > [adjective] > adduced in argument for or against
objected1572
pro and con1650
1650 C. H. Mutatus Polemo Rev. To Rdr. sig. A2v The first subject..being the pro and con arguings of an able Countrey Minister concerning that Book.
1715 M. Davies Εἰκων Μικρο-βιβλικὴ Pref. 25 Several Pro and Con-Pamphlets.
1822 S. T. Coleridge Coll. Lett. (1971) V. 256 But we gave it—many words indeed, for the amusement of pro and con Talk, in the lack of better Matter.
1857 W. B. Adams Jrnl. Soc. Arts 5 190/1 Broadway is one of the few streets without them [sc. railway lines], and even that has been the subject of a law-suit between pro and con railers.
1894 Reno (Nevada) Evening Gaz. 13 Dec. Its solution depends more on the action of legislative bodies—they are the proper tribunals before which to test conclusions by pro and con arguments.
1948 J. K. Folsom in H. Becker Family, Marriage & Parenthood ii. vii. 242 These are not to be regarded as ‘pro’ and ‘con’ arguments, but rather as various ways of looking at things.
1961 Dallas Morning News 17 Feb. i. 5 We're getting more ‘pro’ letters than ‘con’ on horse race betting.
1966 ‘W. Cooper’ Mem. New Man i. iv. 49 ‘In touch’ was a phrase everybody used... They used it in a pro sense; being in touch was most desirable.
1993 Sat. Night (Toronto) June 66/3 Neither extreme pro or con position recognizes the political and social context in which testing occurs.
C. prep.
For, in favour of.Cf. the Latin preposition in phrases borrowed from Latin, as pro aris et focis adv., pro bono publico adv., pro forma adv., pro rata adv., pro re nata adv., pro tanto adv., pro tempore adv.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > approval or sanction > approving [preposition]
pro1837
1837 H. Martineau Diary in Autobiogr. (1877) II. iv. 109 In the morning I am pro, and at night..con the scheme.
1895 W. Stevens Let. 4 Aug. (1967) 6 Nor have I any suggestions pro and con anything in particular.
1928 Warren (Pa.) Tribune 22 Mar. 16/1 The Spanish government seems now to support the campaign of the National League for propaganda in favor of the League, while last year it was opposed to any discussion either pro or against.
1974 R. Harris Double Snare v. 32 It's nice of you to be so pro the idea—I don't feel pro or against.
1990 S. Jamba Patriots xxiv. 233 My parents soon gave in. My mother then became so pro the idea that she began to claim that the Virgin Mother herself had appeared to her three times.
2004 Sunday Mail (S. Afr.) (Nexis) 29 Feb. 36 All of them, when they got over the astonishment of seeing doctors at a rave, were all very pro the idea of pill testing.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2007; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
pron.2
/prəʊ/, U.S. /proʊ/ Oxford University. Now rare.
= pro-proctor n.
ΘΚΠ
society > education > educational administration > university administration > [noun] > proctor
proctorc1447
pro1784
dogwhipper1789
proggins1888
prog1900
1784 Gentleman's Mag. May 366/2 Tumbled old women down for fun, Made Beadles, Pro's, and proctors run, And frighten'd the Vice-Can.
1848 J. H. Newman Loss & Gain iii. 17 When he came to Oxford..he reverenced even the velvet of the Pro.
1861 H. Kingsley Ravenshoe xiv He had past the Pro's at Magdalen turnpike, and they never thought of stopping him... Both the Proctors were down at Coldharbour turnpike.
a1884 M. Pattison Mem. (1885) 229 I had acted as proproctor to Green, the other pro being Kay.
1907 T. E. Kebbel Lord Beaconsfield xix. 312 Brocket, I believe, was a severe proctor. How different from the good little Pro. in my own college.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
pron.3adj.2
/prəʊ/, U.S. /proʊ/ A. n.3
1.
a. A person who engages in an activity on a professional rather than an amateur basis; = professional n. 1a.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > worker > [noun] > follower of occupation as profession > as livelihood
professional1811
pro1856
society > leisure > sport > player or sportsperson > [noun] > professional
player1793
professional1811
professor1819
pro1856
prof1951
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > actor > [noun] > professional actor
pro1856
theatrical1859
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > cricketer > [noun] > professional player
player1793
professional1811
pro1856
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > golf > [noun] > player > professional
pro1856
proette1955
1856 J. C. Hotten Dict. Slang p. lxxv The Stage, of course, has its slang... The stage-manager is familiarly termed daddy; and an actor by profession, or a ‘professional’, is called a pro.
1866 Sporting Life 17 Oct. 4/4 County matches..are also the true source of our supply of professionals of ability, for you rarely hear of a good ‘pro’ until he has played for his county.
1885 J. K. Jerome On Stage 86 The poor players helped each other as well as they could, but provincial Pros. are—or, at least, were—not a wealthy class.
1902 C. J. C. Hyne Mr. Horrocks, Purser 124 ‘I tell you the man's not a theatrical.’..‘Never knew any pro. yet bring either honour or profit to any boat,’ said the Purser.
1932 John o' London's Weekly 25 June 426/1 I spent all my holidays practising in tournaments and having coaching from a pro.
1951 ‘J. Tey’ Daughter of Time xvii. 209 One wouldn't expect an amateur to walk into the Yard and solve a case that had defeated the pro's.
1975 J. Symons Three Pipe Probl. xvi. 158 They're not pros, how long do you think they'll stand up under questioning?
2006 Advocate (Nexis) 3 Feb. 20 Jonathan Rhys Meyers plays Chris, an Irish tennis pro who wants more from life than decades of teaching rich Englishmen how to perk up their game.
b. Sport colloquial (chiefly U.S.). In plural. The professional leagues.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > golf > golf course > [noun] > shop
pro1957
1957 Great Bend (Kansas) Daily Tribune 20 Aug. 5/3 There are three varsity All-American in this eleven... Seven members have played, or are playing in the pros.
1989 Gender & Society 3 80 The only thing I could do and live comfortably would be to play sports—just to get a contract—doesn't matter if you play second or third team in the pros, you're gonna make big bucks.
1998 B. Schwartz Burger Court 21 He was a legendary athlete, earning the nickname ‘Whizzer’ for his accomplishments on the football field, both in college and in the pros.
2004 Austral. Mag. (Nexis) 20 Mar. 12 This pilgrimage of young hopefuls trying their luck in the biggest league of all is one of the untold stories of Australian sport. This northern summer, 95 of them will play in the pros.
2. A prostitute; = professional n. 1b.
ΘΚΠ
society > morality > moral evil > licentiousness > unchastity > prostitution > [noun] > a prostitute
meretrixOE
whoreOE
soiled dovea1250
common womanc1330
putec1384
bordel womanc1405
putaina1425
brothelc1450
harlot?a1475
public womanc1510
naughty pack?1529
draba1533
cat1535
strange woman1535
stew1552
causey-paikera1555
putanie?1566
drivelling1570
twigger1573
punka1575
hackney1579
customer1583
commodity1591
streetwalker1591
traffic1591
trug1591
hackster1592
polecat1593
stale1593
mermaid1595
medlar1597
occupant1598
Paphian1598
Winchester goose1598
pagan1600
hell-moth1602
aunt1604
moll1604
prostitution1605
community1606
miss1606
night-worm1606
bat1607
croshabell1607
prostitute1607
pug1607
venturer1607
nag1608
curtal1611
jumbler1611
land-frigate1611
walk-street1611
doll-common1612
turn-up1612
barber's chaira1616
commonera1616
public commonera1616
trader1615
venturea1616
stewpot1616
tweak1617
carry-knave1623
prostibule1623
fling-dusta1625
mar-taila1625
night-shadea1625
waistcoateera1625
night trader1630
coolera1632
meretrician1631
painted ladya1637
treadle1638
buttock1641
night-walker1648
mob?1650
lady (also girl, etc.) of the game1651
lady of pleasure1652
trugmullion1654
fallen woman1659
girlc1662
high-flyer1663
fireship1665
quaedama1670
small girl1671
visor-mask1672
vizard-mask1672
bulker1673
marmalade-madam1674
town miss1675
town woman1675
lady of the night1677
mawks1677
fling-stink1679
Whetstone whore1684
man-leech1687
nocturnal1693
hack1699
strum1699
fille de joie1705
market-dame1706
screw1725
girl of (the) town1733
Cytherean1751
street girl1764
monnisher1765
lady of easy virtue1766
woman (also lady) of the town1766
kennel-nymph1771
chicken1782
stargazer1785
loose fish1809
receiver general1811
Cyprian1819
mollya1822
dolly-mop1834
hooker1845
charver1846
tail1846
horse-breaker1861
professional1862
flagger1865
cocodette1867
cocotte1867
queen's woman1871
common prostitute1875
joro1884
geisha1887
horizontal1888
flossy1893
moth1896
girl of the pavement1900
pross1902
prossie1902
pusher1902
split-arse mechanic1903
broad1914
shawl1922
bum1923
quiff1923
hustler1924
lady of the evening1924
prostie1926
working girl1928
prostisciutto1930
maggie1932
brass1934
brass nail1934
mud kicker1934
scupper1935
model1936
poule de luxe1937
pro1937
chromo1941
Tom1941
pan-pan1949
twopenny upright1958
scrubber1959
slack1959
yum-yum girl1960
Suzie Wong1962
mattress1964
jamette1965
ho1966
sex worker1971
pavement princess1976
parlour girl1979
crack whore1990
1937 in E. Partridge Dict. Slang 661/1 Pro,..in post-War days, esp. of a prostitute whose profession is body-vending: as opp. to a notoriously or very compliant ‘amateur’, esp. and ‘amateur’ that makes a little extra by sexual ‘adventures’.
1941 B. Schulberg What makes Sammy Run? ix. 247 He treats all women like pros.
1976 ‘E. McBain’ Guns iv. 95 Benny already had himself two girls..experienced pros who were bringing in enough cash every week to keep him living pretty good.
1999 Evening Post (Wellington) (Nexis) 22 July 13 Her name was Cinnamon and that she was a pro (prostitute) who specialises in Pamela Anderson fantasies.
B. adj.2
Of a person: engaging in an activity, esp. a sport, on a professional rather than an amateur basis; (of an activity, esp. a sporting competition) undertaken or entered into by professionals; = professional adj. 3a, 3b.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > worker > [adjective] > trained in theoretic part of occupation > following occupation as livelihood
professional1606
professionarya1813
pro1916
society > leisure > sport > player or sportsperson > [adjective] > professional
professional1851
pro1916
semi-professional1953
semi-pro1980
1908 Fort Wayne (Indiana) Daily News 22 Apr. 3/3 The best semi-pro teams in this part of the country will be booked to meet the Shamrocks.]
1916 Syracuse (N.Y.) Herald 15 Oct. 37/5 (heading) Barnes wins pro golf championship.
1953 Lima (Ohio) News 20 May 22/5 Music fans, myself included, have a yen for the nasal Carmichael tones on such epics as ‘Hong Kong Blues’. Since he lays no claims to being a pro singer, I asked him how he got started with it.
1961 Boxing News 20 Oct. 10 Next live pro item will be the Maurice Cullen-Guy Gracia bout from Newcastle on November 13.
1967 Punch 13 Dec. 898/3 Admittedly amateur play has other points in its favour. For one thing its events are usually played by day and out of doors, whereas much of present-day pro-play is staged indoors under lights at night.
1970 Washington Post 20 Sept. d1/1 Baseball needs such finishes in order to provide some counter-interest to college and pro football, already moving into high gear.
1992 Boxing News 11 Sept. 10/5 When I turned pro I used to spar with him and he took liberties every time.
2006 Baltimore Sun (Nexis) 6 Jan. 1 c Walt (Tim Streeter, the one pro actor in the cast) is obsessed with Johnny (Doug Cooeyate), who scorns him.
Compounds
pro shop n. (also pro's shop) Golf a shop or workshop run by the resident professional at a golf club.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > trading place > place where retail transactions made > [noun] > shop > shop at golf club
pro shop1927
1905 H. Vardon Compl. Golfer iv. 39 The proper place for him [sc. the beginner] to go is the professional's shop which is attached to the club of which he has become a member. Nearly all clubs have their own professionals, who are makers and sellers of clubs.]
1927 Davenport (Iowa) Democrat & Leader 9 June 4/7 Work is being rushed on the new club house... This will house the pro-shop, lounging room and lunch room.
1937 H. Longhurst Golf 3 An extremely high standard of business morality obtains among professional golfers. A novice may enter a pro's shop [to buy clubs], a chicken ready for the plucking, and yet come out with all his feathers on.
1998 Today's Golfer May 106/2 It..features spacious changing rooms and a pro shop on the ground floor and a spike bar, lounge and dining room on the first.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
Pron.4
Biochemistry.
The amino acid proline.
ΚΠ
1945 E. Brand et al. in Jrnl. Amer. Chem. Soc. 67 1531/2 The empirical formula in terms of amino acid residues is (using the first 3 letters of each as the symbol for the amino acid residues): Gly8..Pro15..Ser20Thr21Tyr9(H2O)4.
1972 Science 22 Sept. 1108/3 Animals were given the nonapeptide Pyr-Trp-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gln-Ile-Pro-Pro, a potent inhibitor of the angiotensin-converting enzyme.
1990 EMBO Jrnl. 9 3877/2 Two smaller areas..include generally rare and evolutionarily conserved amino acids such as Phe, Tyr and Pro.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, June 2007; most recently modified version published online June 2020).
prov.
/prəʊ/, U.S. /proʊ/ Only in phrases with con.
Phrases
P1. intransitive. to pro and con: to debate the pros and cons of something; to weigh both sides of a question or topic.
ΚΠ
a1694 [see proing n. at Derivatives].
1694 W. Congreve Double-dealer Ded. sig. A4 When a Man in Soliloquy reasons with himself, and Pro's and Con's, and weighs all his Designs: We ought not to imagine that this Man either talks to us, or to himself.
1772 T. Nugent tr. J. F. de Isla Hist. Friar Gerund II. iv. v. 125 There is nothing to go proing and conning about.
1817 J. Keats Let. 14 Sept. (1958) I. 157 You would never have thought that I really meant you would like to pro and con about those Honeycombs.
1963 Daily Herald (Chicago) 18 Apr. It was a little late for my winter hat and a wee bit early for the summer one. So I proed and conned and came up with my unusual answer. Go hatless.
P2. transitive. to pro and con: to weigh the arguments for and against; to debate both sides of (a question or matter).
ΚΠ
1704 J. Toland tr. Fables of Æsop 120 In the beginning of the World, when the Inhabitants were Proing and Conning what form of Government it was Proper to set up.
1762 L. Sterne Life Tristram Shandy VI. xvi. 65 My father's resolution of putting me into breeches..had..been pro'd and conn'd, and judicially talked over betwixt him and my mother about a month before.
1906 Times 24 Nov. 10/1 For certainty sake I have taken some time to pro and con the question,..and I have come to the conclusion that the publishers have no right..for their existence.
1974 Vidette-messenger (Valparaiso, Indiana) 1 May 11/5 Opinions of the experts are mixed. Everybody from major league pitchers to psychiatrists have proed and conned the subject.
Derivatives
ˈproing n. (with conning) the action of weighing or debating both sides of a question.
ΚΠ
a1694 E. Coxere Adventures by Sea (1945) 49 After much pro-ing and con-ing, the skipper order[ed] to veer out the mainsheet.
1710 E. Ward Galloper 12 What a damnable Race the Fanaticks are running, As we plainly may see by their Proing and Conning.
1817 J. Keats Let. Sept. (1958) 39 'T is with me a certain thing that you are merely fishing for a little proing and conning thereon.
1999 National Rev. (Nexis) 25 Oct. The pro-ing and conning of pundits is worth half a dozen book tours.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
proadv.
/prəʊ/, U.S. /proʊ/ I. In phrases with contra or con.
1.
a. pro and contra: for and against, on both sides.In quot. ?a1500 in the form contra and pro.
ΚΠ
1447 in S. A. Moore Lett. & Papers J. Shillingford (1871) 20 (MED) Of the Bysshoppis Court what court he hadde and sholde have, here of was right moche longage and reson prove and contra.
a1475 (?a1430) J. Lydgate tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Life Man (Vitell.) 5663 (MED) Sapience..tauhte folkys to argue Pro & contra..To preven out the sothfastnesse Off every thyng.
1480 W. Caxton Chron. Eng. ccliii Wherof aroose a grete Altercacion..pro and contra.
?a1500 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Fables: Sheep & Dog l. 1218 in Poems (1981) 50 Contra et pro, strait argumentis thay resolue.
1547 J. Hooper Answer Detection Deuyls Sophistrye sig. K2v But he..disputith the mater so, pro and contra that he confutith all thargumentes, that seme to repugne his purpose.
1605 F. Bacon Of Aduancem. Learning i. sig. K2v See the subtilties of Aristotle, to take a matter both wayes, Pro & Contra, &c. View more context for this quotation
1705 W. Wall Hist. Infant-baptism I. 31 That great Inconvenience of being forc'd in Books to say Pro and Contra the same Things over and over again.
1829 Times 2 July 3/3 The evidence of a multitude of witnesses on both sides pro and contra was as conflicting and as directly opposed as any that was ever heard upon a trial in any of the courts of law amongst the Jewish people.
1887 Polit. Sci. Q. 2 705 The arguments pro and contra are impartially weighed, with the conclusion that no general answer can be given applicable to all countries.
1910 Times 16 Dec. 16/2 Since then, a good deal of writing pro and contra going on, the prohibition has been generally and totally disregarded.
1949 Lethbridge (Alberta) Herald 9 Aug. 4/4 So much nonsense is talked about democracy, both pro and contra, that it is refreshing when a man makes some public remarks on that topic which are clear and sensible.
2001 New Straits Times (Malaysia) (Nexis) 17 Feb. 11 The phenomenon of immigration arouses strong passions, pro and contra.
b. pro and con (also occasionally con and pro) in sense 1a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > [adverb]
pro et con1566
con and pro1572
pro and con1572
pro or con1595
to and again1656
1572 R. Harrison in tr. L. Lavater Of Ghostes To Rdr. The matter throughly handled pro and con.
1616 B. Jonson Epicœne iv. v, in Wks. I. 581 So after long argument (pro & con, as you know) I brought him downe to your two butter-teeth, and them he would haue. View more context for this quotation
1667 Second Advice in Second & Third Advice to Painter 15 Many Historians argue Con and Pro.
1684 R. L'Estrange in Observator in Dialogue Pref. p. ii Upon a Full Computation of the Matter, Pro and Con; I Resolv'd, at last, to Put pen to paper.
1710 J. Addison Tatler No. 224. ⁋3 The whole Argument pro and con in the Case of the Morning-Gowns.
a1790 B. Franklin Autobiogr. (1981) iii. 111 Many Pamphlets pro & con. were publish'd on the Subject, and some by good Quakers in favour of Defence.
1863 C. Reade Hard Cash xxxvii I have no objection to collect the evidence pro and con.
1891 W. Morris News from Nowhere xiv. 98 They don't count heads that time, but put off the formal discussion to the next Mote; and meantime arguments pro and con are flying about.
1913 E. P. Stewart Let. 8 Oct. in Lett. Woman Homesteader (1914) xxiv. 254 Even sweet corn cannot be successfully grown at this altitude, yet those old men argued pro and con till I know their throats must have ached.
1993 Amer. Heritage Nov. 18/2 This inveterate reader of books about the Kennedys, pro and con, failed to spot them.
2. pro or con: on either side, for or against.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > debate, disputation, argument > putting forward for discussion > [adverb]
pro et con1566
con and pro1572
pro and con1572
pro or con1595
to and again1656
1595 tr. G. de S. Du Bartas First Day of Worldes Creation 29 Me listeth not to argue pro or con [Fr. combattre..pour une opinion].
1635 T. Jackson Humiliation Sonne of God 25 I will not determine pro or con, that [etc.].
1685 W. Clark Grand Tryal iii. 178 Who for the reputation of their Schools, Will upon any subject frame debate,..And argue pro, or con, on what you will.
1741–2 S. Richardson Pamela IV. 269 I will not say one Word pro or con. till I know your Mind.
1762 L. Sterne Life Tristram Shandy V. xxxiii. 119 He had managed the point so well that there was not..a single syllable in it, pro or con, directly or indirectly, upon the contention betwixt these two powers in any part of the animal œconomy.
1819 Ld. Byron Let. 25 Jan. (1976) VI. 95 The rest..has never yet affected any human production ‘pro or con’.
1838 J. F. Cooper Home as Found II. ix. 136 What act of mine has declared pro or con in this important affair.
1919 J. L. Lowes Convent. & Revolt in Poetry vi. 254 Contemporary judgments, pro or con, are notorious even among time's laughing-stocks.
1976 Sci. Amer. Oct. 7/1 The only relevant consideration is the evidence pro or con.
1990 P. Taylor See how they Run ii. 27 Sometimes I worry that my squeamishness about making sharp judgments, pro or con, makes me unfit for the slam-bang world of daily journalism.
II. In independent use.
3. For, or in support of a proposition, etc.; in favour.
ΚΠ
1772 B. Franklin Let. 19 Sept. in Papers (1975) XIX. 299 My Way is, to divide a half Sheet of Paper by a Line into two Columns, writing over the one Pro, and over the other Con. Then..I put down under the different Heads short Hints of the different Motives..for or against the Measure... If I find a Reason pro equal to some two Reasons con, I strike out the three.
1839 Times 22 Nov. 5/5 Advocates carry in one pocket the reason pro, and in the other the reasons con.
1966 Classical Philol. 61 272/2 Both Prantl's arguments contra and Kalbfleisch's reasons pro appear equally convincing.
1994 Rev. Securities & Commodities Regulation (Nexis) Aug. 133 The majority spurned SEC arguments pro and made its own arguments con.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2007; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
> see also
also refers to : pro-prefix1
also refers to : pro-prefix2
> as lemmas
PRO
PRO n. Public Record Office.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > record > written record > arrangement and storage of written records > [noun] > place where official records are kept
registery1483
chancery1523
registry1531
cartuary1539
Register House1540
cartulary?1541
arches1626
register office1641
archive1645
record office1647
tabulary1656
registry office1720
registrature1762
dufter1791
records department1825
PRO1892
morgue1914
1892 F. W. Maitland Let. 6 Sept. (1965) 105 I ought to be at P.R.O. next week.
1931 Notes & Queries 5 Dec. 408/2 I cannot find the Returns of officers' services for these regiments at the P.R.O.
1991 Hist. & Computing 3 28/2 Data for the maps and indexes were transcribed in the PRO onto prepared coding forms.
PRO
PRO n. public relations officer.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > information > publishing or spreading abroad > advertising > business of advertising > [noun] > public relations > public relations officer
PRO1941
minder1982
1941 H. Nicolson Diary 8 July (1967) 177 I drive down to White's Club with Duff [Cooper] and beg him to treat the P.R.O.s this afternoon with all gentleness. They are a touchy lot.
1966 ‘H. MacDiarmid’ Company I've Kept i. 22 Philip Jordan, Attlee's P.R.O., was with us.
2003 Pakistan Newswire (Nexis) 28 Apr. Former public relation officer of..Mohammad Shabih Siddiqui..has been appointed as PRO of provincial minister Imtiaz Ahmad Shiekh.
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n.1adj.1prep.c1450
n.21784
n.3adj.21856n.41945
v.a1694
adv.1447see also
as lemmas