What does "progress" mean?
Movement or advancement through a series of events, or points in time; development through time.
Progress
/ˈpɹɑ.ɡɹɛs/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Movement or advancement through a series of events, or points in time; development through time.
- Grammar: progress is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: advance, advancement, progression, about face.
- Useful contrasts: ancient ruins, becalmed, blocked state.
- Usage evidence: There cannot be progress without communication.
How to use "progress"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "progress" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "progress" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "progress" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "progress" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "progress" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "advance" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "progress", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Movement or advancement through a series of events, or points in time; development through time. uncountable, usually
"Testing for the new antidote is currently in progress."
- 2 Any of a series of Soviet, later Russian spacecraft.
- 3 gradual improvement or growth or development wordnet
- 4 Specifically, advancement to a higher or more developed state; development, growth. uncountable, usually
"Science has made extraordinary progress in the last fifty years."
- 5 the act of moving forward (as toward a goal) wordnet
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 An official journey made by a monarch or other high personage; a state journey, a circuit. uncountable, usually
"... Queen Elizabeth in one of her progresses, stopping at Crawley to breakfast, was so delighted with some remarkably fine Hampshire beer which was then presented to her by the Crawley of the day (a handsome gentleman with a trim beard and a good leg), that she forthwith erected Crawley into a borough to send two members to Parliament ..."
- 7 a movement forward wordnet
- 8 A journey forward; travel. archaic, uncountable, usually
"Now Tim began to be struck with these loitering progresses along the garden boundaries in the gloaming, and wondered what they boded."
- 9 Movement onwards, forwards, or towards a specific objective or direction; advance. uncountable, usually
"The thick branches overhanging the path made progress difficult."
Verb
- 1 To move, go, or proceed forward; to advance. intransitive
"Visitors progress through the museum at their own pace."
- 2 develop in a positive way wordnet
- 3 To develop. intransitive
"Societies progress unevenly."
- 4 form or accumulate steadily wordnet
- 5 To develop.; To improve; to become better or more complete. broadly, intransitive
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 move forward, also in the metaphorical sense wordnet
- 7 To expedite. transitive
"Or […] they came to progress matters in which Dudley had taken a hand, and left defrauded or bound over to the king."
Proper Noun
- 1 A placename; A rural municipality of Saskatchewan, Canada.
- 2 A placename; An unincorporated community in Monroe Township, Delaware County, Indiana, United States.
- 3 A placename; An unincorporated community in Pike County, Mississippi, United States.
- 4 A placename; A former unincorporated community and neighborhood of Washington County, Oregon, United States, in the cities of Tigard and Beaverton.
- 5 A placename; An unincorporated community and census-designated place in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States, lying in Susquehanna Township and Lower Paxton Township.
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A programming language
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"There cannot be progress without communication."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "progress"?
Common synonyms include: advance, advancement, progression, about face, about-face, accomplishment.
How do you use "progress" in a sentence?
There cannot be progress without communication.
How do you pronounce "progress"?
Pronounced /ˈpɹɑ.ɡɹɛs/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English progresse, from Old French progres (“a going forward”), from Latin prōgressus (“an advance”), from the participle stem of prōgredī (“to go forward, advance, develop”), from pro- (“forth, before”) + gradi (“to walk, go”). Displaced native Old English forþgang.
Etymology 2
From the noun. Lapsed into disuse in the 17th century, except in the US. Considered an Americanism on reintroduction to use in the UK.
Etymology 3
Borrowed from Russian Прогресс (Progress), from прогресс (progress).