Profile
/ˈproʊ.faɪl/noun
An outline or side view of a person or object, or a summary of someone’s characteristics.
Did you know?Profile comes from Italian profilo, a term from art and architecture meaning a side outline, from Latin pro- (“forward”) + filum (“thread”), so the word’s oldest image is a line being drawn into form.
Etymological Timeline
Late Latin
Latin
profilum
“a side outline or contour”
Italian Renaissance
Italian
profilo
“a side view, outline, or contour in drawing and sculpture”
17th Century
French
profil
“an outline seen from the side”
17th Century
English
profile
“a side view or outline of a face or object”
20th Century
English
profile
“a summary description of a person, especially in media or records”