rehearsal

noun

re·​hears·​al ri-ˈhər-səl 

1

: something recounted or told again : recital

2

a

: a private performance or practice session preparatory to a public appearance

b

: a practice exercise : trial

Synonyms of rehearsal

• practice
• trial
• preview

Examples of rehearsal in a Sentence

She was 15 minutes late to rehearsal.

There are only three more rehearsals before the concert.

Recent Examples on the Web

According to investigators, the car Sengendo was allegedly driving ran through a red light, struck another vehicle and then hit Chalekian, who was walking back to her dance studio between rehearsals after grabbing dinner, her family said. —Caleb Lunetta, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Nov. 2025

In a rehearsal studio in the Echo Park neighborhood in Los Angeles, Kurtis Blow was limbering up and getting loose. —David Kamp, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025

An intimacy coordinator was present at the casting, at the rehearsals, as well as on set for the shooting of all the intimate scenes. —Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 21 Nov. 2025

The six-part series promises an intimate look behind her record-breaking Eras Tour, from the sweat and stamina of rehearsals to the reflective moments that came in the hotel room after the stage lights turned off. —Bryan West, Nashville Tennessean, 21 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing rehearsal

• dress rehearsal
• in rehearsal
• pre-rehearsal
• rehearsal dinner
• wedding rehearsal

Rhymes for rehearsal

• demersal
• dispersal
• reversal
• transversal
• traversal
• bursal
• versal
• universal

Kids Definition

rehearsal

noun

re·​hears·​al ri-ˈhər-səl 

1

: a private performance or practice session in preparation for a public appearance

2

: a practice exercise : trial

Medical Definition

rehearsal

noun

re·​hears·​al ri-ˈhər-səl 

1

: a method for improving memory by mentally or verbally repeating over and over the information to be remembered

2

: the repeated mental review of a desired action or behavioral response

preoperative rehearsal of coping imagery to reduce anxiety