Synonyms of proficiency

proficiency

noun

prə-ˈfi-shən(t)-sē 

1

as in mastery

a highly developed skill in or knowledge of something

surprised by his proficiency at the game after only the briefest explanation of the rules

Synonyms & Similar Words

• mastery
• experience
• IQ
• mastership
• command
• expertise
• fluency
• facility
• practice
• virtuosity
• literacy
• skill(s)
• familiarity
• acquaintance
• intimacy
• know-how
• hang

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• incompetence
• incompetency
• ignorance
• illiteracy
• unfamiliarity

2

as in skills

knowledge gained by actually doing or living through something

acquired proficiency at golf through long hours of practice

Synonyms & Similar Words

• skills
• experience
• expertise
• chops
• know-how
• savvy
• background
• mastery
• moxie
• familiarity
• acquaintance
• intimacy
• conversance
• command

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• inexperience
• ignorance
• unfamiliarity
• unawareness

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of proficiency

The experienced leader knows one of the keys to advancing Baltimore City Public Schools is improving student proficiency. — Kellye Lynn, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026

Google says training across languages, dialects, and different proficiency levels helped the model learn structures shared between sign languages. — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 12 Aug. 2026

Developing proficiency in this process generally requires extensive training and experience across numerous cases. — Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026

In the three interviews Kersanava conducted with AI avatar applicants, the candidates had applied for English-speaking roles as non-native speakers, leaning on AI as a crutch for a lack of language proficiency. — Jake Angelo, semafor.com, 7 Aug. 2026