practice

American  

[prak-tis] / ˈpræk tɪs /

British, practise

noun

• practices
  plural

1. habitual or customary performance; operation.

   office practice.

2. habit; custom.

   It is not the practice here for men to wear long hair.

3. repeated performance or systematic exercise for the purpose of acquiring skill or proficiency.

   Practice makes perfect.

   Synonyms:

   application

4. condition arrived at by experience or exercise.

   She refused to play the piano, because she was out of practice.

5. the action or process of performing or doing something.

   to put a scheme into practice;

   the shameful practices of a blackmailer.

6. the exercise or pursuit of a profession or occupation, especially law or medicine.

   She plans to set up practice in her hometown.

7. the business of a professional person.

   The doctor wanted his daughter to take over his practice when he retired.

8. Law. the established method of conducting legal proceedings.

9. Archaic. plotting; intrigue; trickery.

10. Archaic. Usually practices. intrigues; plots.

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verb (used with object)

• practices,
  present (3rd person singular)
• practiced,
  past participle,  past
• practicing
  present participle

1. to perform or do habitually or usually.

   to practice a strict regimen.

2. to follow or observe habitually or customarily.

   to practice one's religion.

3. to exercise or pursue as a profession, art, or occupation.

   to practice law.

4. to perform or do repeatedly in order to acquire skill or proficiency.

   to practice the violin.

5. to train or drill (a person, animal, etc.) in something in order to give proficiency.

verb (used without object)

• practices,
  present (3rd person singular)
• practiced,
  past participle,  past
• practicing
  present participle

1. to do something habitually or as a practice.

2. to pursue a profession, especially law or medicine.

3. to exercise oneself by repeated performance in order to acquire skill.

   to practice at shooting.

4. Archaic. to plot or conspire.

practice British  

/ ˈpræktɪs /

noun

1. a usual or customary action or proceeding

   it was his practice to rise at six

   he made a practice of stealing stamps

2. repetition or exercise of an activity in order to achieve mastery and fluency

3. the condition of having mastery of a skill or activity through repetition (esp in the phrases in practice, out of practice )

4. the exercise of a profession

   he set up practice as a lawyer

5. the act of doing something

   he put his plans into practice

6. the established method of conducting proceedings in a court of law

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verb

1. the US spelling of practise

practice Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing practice

• in practice
• make a practice of
• out of practice
• put into practice
• sharp practice

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Usage

What’s the difference between practice and practise? In British English (and many other international varieties of English), the spelling practice is used when the word is a noun, while the spelling practise is used when it’s a verb. In American English, the spelling practice is always used, regardless of whether the word is used as a verb or a noun. This is somewhat similar to the difference in spelling between advice (noun) and advise (verb)—a distinction that’s used in both British and American English. However, unlike advice and advise, practice and practise are always pronounced the same. Here is an example of how practice and practise would be used in the same sentence in British English. Example: Remember, practice makes perfect—the more you practise, the better you will get. Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between practice and practise.

Synonym Usage

See custom. See exercise.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mispractice
  noun
• nonpractice
  noun
• practicer
  noun
• prepractice
  verb
• outpractice
  verb (used with object)
• overpractice
  verb (used with object)
• repractice
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• practices
  plural

Participles

• practicing
  present
• practiced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• practice
  simple
• practices
  simple
• have practiced
  perfect
• has practiced
  perfect
• am practicing
  progressive
• are practicing
  progressive
• is practicing
  progressive
• have been practicing
  perfect progressive
• has been practicing
  perfect progressive

Past

• practiced
  simple
• had practiced
  perfect
• was practicing
  progressive
• were practicing
  progressive
• had been practicing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will practice
  simple
• will have practiced
  perfect
• will be practicing
  progressive
• will have been practicing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of practice

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English verb practisen, practizen, from Middle French pra(c)tiser, from Medieval Latin prāctizāre, alteration of prācticāre, derivative of prāctica “practical work,” from Greek prāktikḗ, noun use of feminine of prāktikós; noun derivative of the verb; see practic ( def. ), -ize ( def. )

Explanation

Practice can be a noun or a verb, but either way it's about how things are done on a regular basis. You can practice shotput every day because your town has a practice of supporting track-and-field events. One can practice the tuba for hours on end, repeating the same song over and over, serving to both get better at the tuba and to convince the neighbors they should move to Florida. You could learn the common practice of offering a guest a beverage when they arrive at your party, if you care to be polite. One can also practice a profession or a religion, as in “I practice Buddhism and I have a booming international law practice.”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

practice practices practiced practicing

The process is known as transshipping, which refers to the practice of transferring cargo through another country while en route to a final destination.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

“That’s something we’ll all see. I imagine, from what I’ve seen in practice, it’s going to be pretty close. They’re both good.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

The proposed regulations unveiled this week “really clarifies a lot of what employers were waiting for,” said Dorian Smith, leader of Mercer’s law and policy practice.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

The Constitutional Council's ruling will see France join the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and Canada, which have already legalised the practice.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

Then hold practice drills until your people can disappear in that room without a trace in less than a minute.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

The suit alleges public nuisance and unlawful business practices among the claims.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Combining preserved midcentury architecture, sustainable living practices, and an abundance of outdoor amenities, the Northridge property offers buyers a home that celebrates both California’s design heritage and a more intentional way of living.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026

Yet across the continent, their disappearance is becoming impossible to ignore, as conservationists warn that hunting linked to traditional beliefs and spiritual practices continues to threaten several vulture species to the point of near extinction.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

The probe targets the marketing practices of four prediction markets with operations in the city.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

Many German, Italian, and Japanese citizens did not support the fascist practices of their governments.

From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly

Anthropic’s Mythos practiced deception, while OpenAI models swapped tips on a secret message board.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

I read a study years ago that fundamentally changed the way I thought about estate planning and how I practiced it as an attorney and, later, a wealth adviser.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026

Wellness as practiced and performed by Kennedy is certainly curated to project manliness.

From Slate ● Jul. 29, 2026

Prosecutors allege she illegally performed abortions and practiced medicine without a license.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026

Life-long learning and self-growth are valued, practiced, and mentored in others.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

One group has started practicing parkour in a playground.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

A lot of times they were practicing lawyers, but mainly politicians.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

Associates can now have a live voice conversation with an AI-generated persona of a shopper, practicing how and what to say to close the deal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

And part of the fun is meeting locals with similar interests and practicing speaking another language, whether that means going on dates or just making new friends.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026

From morning till night it continued: the choosing of outfits, the practicing of pirouettes, the making of to-do lists.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

Related Words

• form
• habit
• method
• proceeding
• process
• rule
• system
• tradition
• use