refuse to acknowledge; disclaim knowledge of; responsibility for, or association with; "Her husband disavowed her after 30 years of marriage and six children"
(law) a conditional release from imprisonment that entitles the person to serve the remainder of the sentence outside the prison as long as the terms of release are complied with
a promise; "he gave his word"
release a criminal from detention and place him on parole; "The prisoner was paroled after serving 10 years in prison"
state insincerely; "He professed innocence but later admitted his guilt"; "She pretended not to have known the suicide bomber"; "She pretends to be an expert on wine"
confess one's faith in, or allegiance to; "The terrorists professed allegiance to the Muslim faith"; "he professes to be a Communist"
practice as a profession, teach, or claim to be knowledgeable about; "She professes organic chemistry"
take vows, as in religious order; "she professed herself as a nun"
receive into a religious order or congregation
state freely; "The teacher professed that he was not generous when it came to giving good grades"
ask (someone) to marry you; "he popped the question on Sunday night"; "she proposed marriage to the man she had known for only two months"; "The old bachelor finally declared himself to the young woman"