practice

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Jump to: navigation, search

Contents

[edit] English

Wikipedia-logo.png
Wikipedia has an article on:

Wikipedia

[edit] Alternative spellings

  • (Commonwealth) practise (used only for the verb)

[edit] Etymology

See practise.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Noun

Singular
practice

Plural
practices

practice (plural practices)

  1. Repetition of an activity to improve skill.
    He will need lots of practice with those lines before he performs them.
  2. The ongoing pursuit of a craft or profession, particularly in medicine or the fine arts.
    She ran a thriving medical practice.
  3. The observance of religious duties which a Church requires of its members.
  4. A customary action, habit, or behavior; a manner or routine.
    It is the usual practice of employees there to wear neckties only when meeting with customers.
    It is good practice to check each door and window before leaving.
  5. Actual operation or experiment, in contrast to theory.
    That may work in theory, but will it work in practice?

[edit] Usage notes

British, Canadian and Australian English distinguish between practice (a noun) and practise (a verb), analogously with advice/advise. In American English, practice is commonly used for both forms.

[edit] Synonyms

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Related terms

[edit] Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

[edit] Verb

Infinitive
to practice

Third person singular
practices

Simple past
practiced

Past participle
practiced

Present participle
practicing

to practice (third-person singular simple present practices, present participle practicing, simple past and past participle practiced)

  1. (transitive, US) To repeat (an activity) as a way of improving one's skill in that activity.
    You should practice playing piano every day.
  2. (intransitive, US) To repeat an activity in this way.
    If you want to speak French well, you need to practice.
  3. (transitive, US) To perform or observe in a habitual fashion.
    They gather to practice religion every Saturday.
  4. (transitive, US) To pursue (a career, especially law, fine art or medicine).
    She practiced law for forty years before retiring.
  5. (intransitive, archaic, US) To conspire.
  6. Alternative spelling of practise.

[edit] Usage notes

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.