- present participle of proceed.
proceeding
Americannoun
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proceedings
plural
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a particular action or course or manner of action.
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proceedings, a series of activities or events; happenings.
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the act of a person or thing that proceeds.
Our proceeding down the mountain was hindered by mud slides.
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proceedings, a record of the doings or transactions of a fraternal, academic, etc., society.
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Law. proceedings,
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the instituting or carrying on of an action at law.
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a legal step or measure.
to institute proceedings against a person.
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noun
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an act or course of action
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the institution of a legal action
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any step taken in a legal action
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(plural) the minutes of the meetings of a club, society, etc
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(plural) legal action; litigation
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(plural) the events of an occasion, meeting, etc
Usage
What are other ways to say proceeding?
The noun proceeding refers to a particular course or manner of action. The plural proceedings refers to a series of activities or events, or to a record of the doings or transactions of a social club or academic society. Do you know when to use proceedings instead of procedure or process? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of proceeding
late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at proceed, -ing 1
Explanation
The noun proceeding (often pluralized as proceedings) is used in legal settings to show something is happening, or moving forward: "During the legal proceedings the judge declared him mentally unbalanced." Most of the time, the noun proceeding is used in law to show that a sequence of actions have taken place, leading up to judgment day in court. If you move forward with legal proceedings, you might start by filing a lawsuit or a claim against someone. Outside of the law, the noun is also used to show the steps taken, that there is involvement with a process or venture, or that progress is being made: "He took the necessary proceedings to make sure everything was okay."
Vocabulary lists containing proceeding
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The Crucible
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"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Blood tests and an X-ray early on Wednesday showed his recovery was "proceeding normally", the doctors said, and he has also undergone respiratory physiotherapy.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
Meanwhile, in Abilene, Texas, construction of the Stargate data center is proceeding at a breakneck pace.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Police again stopped the Orangemen from proceeding on Sunday.
From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026
But now that it’s proceeding, the construction needs to be done quickly, in time for the 2028 Summer Olympics, to avoid fines, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
They passed one another without speaking, each man proceeding to the opposite end of the bridge.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
On Wednesday, New York City Comptroller Mark Levine sent a letter to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei urging the company to pause its IPO proceedings until it fully addresses safety and governance issues surrounding AI technology.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
"Etihad was not the respondent and is unlikely to have had an independent right to participate in the proceedings," Severin said.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
The judge said the women had shown "remarkable courage" during the court proceedings.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
He posted $2-million bail after a few days in custody and was released with GPS monitoring, enabling him to resume a semi-normal life with his family as criminal proceedings dragged on for years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
Megan looked irritated, even bored, her eyes sometimes wandering from the proceedings.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
