profile definition | Dictionary.com

pro⋅file

[proh-fahyl]

noun, verb, -filed, -fil⋅ing.

–noun

1.	the outline or contour of the human face, esp. the face viewed from one side.

2.	a picture or representation of the side view of a head.

3.	an outlined view, as of a city or mountain.

4.	an outline of an object, as a molding, formed on a vertical plane passed through the object at right angles to one of its principal horizontal dimensions.

5.	a drawing or the like representing this.

6.	Surveying. a vertical section of the ground surface taken parallel to a survey line. Compare cross section (def. 6).

7.	a verbal, arithmetical, or graphic summary or analysis of the history, status, etc., of a process, activity, relationship, or set of characteristics: a biochemical profile of a patient's blood; a profile of national consumer spending.

8.	an informal biography or a concisely presented sketch of the life and character of a person.

9.	a set of characteristics or qualities that identify a type or category of person or thing: a profile of a typical allergy sufferer.

10.	the look, configuration, or lines of something: cars with a modern profile.

11.	degree of noticeability; visibility.

12.	Psychology. a description of behavioral and personality traits of a person compared with accepted norms or standards.

13.	Theater. a flat stage property or scenic piece cut from a firm, thin material, as of beaverboard or plywood, and having an irregular edge resembling the silhouette of a natural object.

14.	(in a gear) the outline of either end of a tooth.

15.	Naval Architecture. a longitudinal elevation or section of a vessel. Compare outboard profile.

–verb (used with object)

16.	to draw a profile of.

17.	to produce or present a history, description, or analysis of: The magazine will profile the candidate in its next issue.

Origin:
1650–60; (n.) < It prof(f)ilo, n. deriv. of profilare to delineate, outline, equiv. to pro- pro- ¹ + -filare, deriv. of filo line, thread < L fīlum

Related forms:

pro⋅fil⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
1. silhouette.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To profile

pro·file (prō'fīl')

1. A side view of an object or structure, especially of the human head.
2. A representation of an object or structure seen from the side. See Synonyms at form.
An outline of an object. See Synonyms at outline.
Degree of exposure to public notice; visibility: preferred to keep a low profile.
A biographical essay presenting the subject's most noteworthy characteristics and achievements.
A formal summary or analysis of data, often in the form of a graph or table, representing distinctive features or characteristics: a psychological profile of a job applicant; a biochemical profile of blood.
Geology A vertical section of soil or rock showing the sequence of the various layers.

tr.v. pro·filed, pro·fil·ing, pro·files

To draw or shape a profile of.
To produce a profile of.

[Italian profilo, from profilare, to draw in outline : pro-, forward (from Latin prō-; see pro-¹) + filare, to draw a line (from Medieval Latin fīlāre, to spin, from Latin fīlum, thread; see g^whī- in Indo-European roots).]
pro'fil·er n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Profile

Pro"file\, n. [It. profilo, fr. L. pro before + filum a thread, an outline, shape: cf. F. profil. See File arow, and cf. Purfle, Purl, a fringe.]

1. An outline, or contour; as, the profile of an apple.

2. (Paint & Sculp.) A human head represented sidewise, or in a side view; the side face or half face.

3. (a) (Arch.) A section of any member, made at right angles with its main lines, showing the exact shape of moldings and the like. (b) (Civil Engin.) A drawing exhibiting a vertical section of the ground along a surveyed line, or graded work, as of a railway, showing elevations, depressions, grades, etc.

Profile paper (Civil Engin.), paper ruled with vertical and horizontal lines forming small oblong rectangles, adapted for drawing profiles.

Profile

Pro"file\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Profiled; p. pr. & vb. n. Profiling] [Cf. F. profiler, It. profilare. See Profile, n.]

1. to draw the outline of; to draw in profile, as an architectural member.

2. (Mech.) To shape the outline of an object by passing a cutter around it.

Profiling machine, a jigging machine.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : profile

Spanish: perfil,

German: das Profil,

Japanese: 横顔

More Translations »

profile

n.
1. A control file for a program, esp. a text file automatically read from each user's home directory and intended to be easily modified by the user in order to customize the program's behavior. Used to avoid hardcoded choices (see also dot file, rc file).
2. [techspeak] A report on the amounts of time spent in each routine of a program, used to find and tune away the hot spots in it. This sense is often verbed. Some profiling modes report units other than time (such as call counts) and/or report at granularities other than per-routine, but the idea is similar. 3.[techspeak] A subset of a standard used for a particular purpose. This sense confuses hackers who wander into the weird world of ISO standards no end!

Jargon File 4.2.0
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profile (n.)

1656, "a drawing of the outline of anything," from It. profilo "a drawing in outline," from profilare "to draw in outline," from pro- "forth" + filare "draw out, spin," from L.L. filare "to spin, draw out a line," from filum "thread." Meaning "biographical sketch, character study" is from 1734. The verb is 1715, "to represent in profile," from the noun. Meaning "to summarize a person in writing" is from 1948. Profiling in the racial/ethnic stereotyping sense is recorded from c.1991.

Main Entry: ¹pro·file
Pronunciation: 'prO-"fIl
Function: noun
1 : a set of data exhibiting the significant features of somethingand often obtained by multiple tests profile of CK isoenzymes in skeletal muscle —A. J. Siegel & D. M. Dawson>
2 : a graphic representation of theextent to which an individual or group exhibits traits as determined by tests or ratings profile —Diseases of the NervousSystem>

Main Entry: ²profile
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: pro·filed; pro·fil·ing
: to represent in profile or by aprofile : produce a profile of (as by writing or graphing)

profile pro·file (prō'fīl')
n.

A side view of an object or a structure, especially of the human head.
A formal summary or analysis of data, often in the form of a graph or table, representing distinctive features or characteristics.

PROFILE
Simple language for matching and scoring data. "User's Manual for the PROFILE System", Cambridge Computer Assoc (May 1974).
[The Jargon File]

profile
1. A control file for a program, especially a text file automatically read from each user's home directory and intended to be easily modified by the user in order to customise the program's behaviour. Used to avoid hard-coded choices (see also dot file, rc file).
2. A report on the amounts of time spent in each routine of a program, used to find and tune away the hot spots in it. This sense is often verbed. Some profiling modes report units other than time (such as call counts) and/or report at granularities other than per-routine, but the idea is similar.

profile

see keep a low profile.

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