practice

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verb

prac·tice ˈprak-təs

variants or less commonly practise

practiced also practised; practicing also practising

Synonyms of practice next

transitive verb

: carry out, apply

practice what you preach

: to do or perform often, customarily, or habitually

practice politeness

: to be professionally engaged in

practice medicine

: to perform or work at repeatedly so as to become proficient

practice the act

: to train by repeated exercises

practice pupils in penmanship

obsolete : plot

intransitive verb

: to do repeated exercises for proficiency

: to pursue a profession actively

archaic : intrigue

: to do something customarily

: to take advantage of someone

he practised on their credulity with huge success—

The Times Literary Supplement (London)

practicer noun

practice

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noun

variants or less commonly practise

: actual performance or application

ready to carry out in practice what they advocated in principle

: a repeated or customary action

had this irritating practice

: the usual way of doing something

local practices

: the form, manner, and order of conducting legal suits and prosecutions

: systematic exercise for proficiency

practice makes perfect

: the condition of being proficient through systematic exercise

get in practice

: the continuous exercise of a profession

: a professional business

especially : one constituting an incorporeal property

Choose the Right Synonym for practice

habit, practice, usage, custom, wont mean a way of acting fixed through repetition.

habit implies a doing unconsciously and often compulsively.

had a habit of tapping his fingers

practice suggests an act or method followed with regularity and usually through choice.

our practice is to honor all major credit cards

usage suggests a customary action so generally followed that it has become a social norm.

western-style dress is now common usage in international business

custom applies to a practice or usage so steadily associated with an individual or group as to have almost the force of unwritten law.

the custom of wearing black at funerals

wont usually applies to a habitual manner, method, or practice of an individual or group.

as was her wont, she slept until noon

Example Sentences

Verb To be a good musician, you have to practice a lot. Have you been practicing your lines for the play? She had to practice flying in various weather conditions before she could get her pilot's license. Grandmother taught us to practice good manners. Practice what you preach—don't smoke if you tell your children not to smoke. Noun Being a good musician takes a lot of practice. I'm sure you'll learn your lines for the play with enough practice. They'll get better with practice. I'm late for trumpet practice. The marching band has practice every Wednesday afternoon. The team's practices usually last two hours. She has made a practice of volunteering at a homeless shelter one weekend a month. The country's poor sanitation practices have led to widespread disease. Burial practices vary around the world. It is common practice among my friends to not use capital letters in e-mail. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Presence in various communication channels helps the brand stay in touch, even with clients who practice digital detox. —

Boris Abaev, Forbes, 26 Jan. 2023 Research shows that people who practice yoga for at least half an hour once a week for at least four years gain less weight in midlife than people who don’t. —

Rachel Reiff Ellis, Fortune, 21 Jan. 2023 Cornerback Trayvon Mullen was the only player on the roster who didn’t practice Friday in the Cowboys’ only padded work of the week. —

Dallas News, 13 Jan. 2023 Shallow water blackout, however, occurs in people who practice pre-submersion hyperventilation. —

Dr. Michael Daignault, USA TODAY, 12 Jan. 2023 And their political involvement has alienated many Jews abroad who practice less stringent forms of Judaism. —

Isabel Kershner, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2023 Colts who did not practice Wednesday because of injury: WR Ashton Dulin (concussion), TE Kylen Granson (ankle), CB Kenny Moore II (ankle). —

Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 28 Dec. 2022 Others who did not practice: safety Kerby Joseph (back), center Frank Ragnow (foot), wide receiver Josh Reynolds (illness), offensive lineman Logan Stenberg (illness) and linebacker Josh Woods (biceps). —

Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press, 28 Dec. 2022 And while Hoodoo’s deep, magical connections between food and spirit are recognized and practiced by Black people, they should be honored by those who eat Hoppin’ John outside of the culture as well, even those who don’t practice Hoodoo. —

Amethyst Ganaway, Washington Post, 23 Dec. 2022

Noun

Middleton responded well to his five-on-five practice with members of the Bucks and the Wisconsin Herd while in Miami, and the Bucks return home for a week that includes three off days. —

Jim Owczarski, Journal Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2023 In addition to his regular practice, Mr. Goldman also did design work for residential rebuilds and new homes for many friends and clients throughout Baltimore. —

Frederick N. Rasmussen, Baltimore Sun, 13 Jan. 2023 In taking on the role, Hur will work full-time at the department and at least temporarily leave his private practice at Gibson Dunn. —

Perry Stein, Washington Post, 12 Jan. 2023 Flynn dealt with hundreds of patients in her practice and the cases that resulted in her conviction represented a limited slice of her work. —

Quinn Owen, ABC News, 11 Jan. 2023 The Cowboys hoped to re-sign an offensive lineman to their practice squad Tuesday. —

Dallas News, 10 Jan. 2023 My favorite thing about visiting Japan in 2017 was seeing the art of kintsugi, which is their practice of putting back together broken things with gold and varnish. —

Rachel Sherman, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2023 Ish Wainright concurred with Craig during their Saturday practice. —

Dana Scott, The Arizona Republic, 8 Jan. 2023 Saman Movassaghi Gonzalez, an immigration attorney in Miramar, Florida, uses TikTok to market her law practice to her 83,000 followers. —

Faith Karimi, CNN, 7 Jan. 2023 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'practice.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English practisen, from Middle French practiser, from Medieval Latin practizare, alteration of practicare, from practica practice, noun, from Late Latin practice, from Greek praktikē, from feminine of praktikos

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler

The first known use of practice was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century