competente

See also: compétente

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌkɔm.pəˈtɛn.tə/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: com‧pe‧ten‧te

Adjective

competente

1. inflection of competent:
   1. masculine/feminine singular attributive
   2. definite neuter singular attributive
   3. plural attributive

Italian

Etymology 1

From Latin competentem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kom.peˈtɛn.te/
• Rhymes: -ɛnte
• Hyphenation: com‧pe‧tèn‧te

Adjective

competente m or f by sense (plural competenti, superlative competentissimo)

1. competent

   Antonym: incompetente

2. expert, qualified
3. (law) having jurisdiction
4. referring to a company doctor (medico competente), as required by legislation on occupational health and safety

Derived terms

• competentemente
• incompetente

Related terms

• competenza
• competere

Noun

competente m or f by sense (plural competenti)

1. expert

   Synonyms: esperto, capace

   Antonym: incompetente

Etymology 2

Participle

competente m or f by sense (plural competenti)

1. present participle of competere

Further reading

• competente in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Latin

Participle

competente

1. ablative masculine/feminine/neuter singular of competēns

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin competentem, present participle of competō (“to meet; to coincide; to agree”).

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kõ.peˈtẽ.t͡ʃi/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /kõ.peˈtẽ.t͡ʃi/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /kõ.peˈtẽ.te/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kõ.pɨˈtẽ.tɨ/

Adjective

competente m or f (plural competentes)

1. competent (having sufficient skill, knowledge or qualifications)

   Synonym: capaz

   Antonyms: incapaz, incompetente

2. competent (adequate for the purpose)
3. (law) competent (having jurisdiction or authority over a particular issue)

Related terms

• competência
• competentemente
• competir
• incompetência
• incompetente
• incompetentemente

Further reading

• “competente”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “competente”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin competentem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kompeˈtente/ [kõm.peˈt̪ẽn̪.t̪e]
• Rhymes: -ente
• Syllabification: com‧pe‧ten‧te

Adjective

competente m or f (masculine and feminine plural competentes)

1. competent
2. expert, qualified

Derived terms

• autoridad competente
• competentemente

Related terms

• competir
• pedir

Further reading

• “competente”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025