Meanings
- uncountableEarly retirement from professional work with the positive idea of pursuing something more fulfilling.
1998, John S. Murphy, Frederic M. Hudson The Joy of Old, Geode Press, 1998, (Amazon.Com book review), Retire? Thats something you do to a wheel. The authors suggest Protirement instead
1 more example
1961. George Jean Nathan, Henry Louis Mencken The American Mercury, p. 92, In other words, retirement connotes regression, whereas protirement would mean progression. ... Arthur Godfrey was right! "Retirement" is a dirty word.
Origin
Blend of pro- + retirement; coined by Arthur Godfrey, according to the article Let's Protire, The American Mercury, January 1961.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
protirement. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protirement
“protirement.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protirement. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “protirement,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protirement.
Source: protirement on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.