attendance

[uh-ten-duh ns]

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noun

the persons or number of persons present: an attendance of more than 300 veterans.

Idioms

dance attendance, to be obsequious in one's attentions or service; attend constantly: He was given a larger office and several assistants to dance attendance on him.

Origin of attendance

1325–75; Middle English < Anglo-French, Middle French. See attend, -ance

Related formspro·at·tend·ance, adjectiveun·at·tend·ance, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for attendance

appearance, participation, presence, attending, draw, gross, gathering, assembly, crowd, house, company, congregation, audience, gate, turnout, public, assemblage

Examples from the Web for attendance

Contemporary Examples of attendance

Mallory, Skolnik, and Simmons were all in attendance Wednesday for the City Hall press conference.
Eric Garner Protesters Have a Direct Line to City Hall
Jacob Siegel
December 11, 2014
In attendance was supermodel Elle Macpherson and king of pop Michael Jackson, who also performed.
I Watched a Casino Kill Itself: The Awful Last Nights of Atlantic City’s Taj Mahal
Olivia Nuzzi
December 8, 2014
Her attendance will bring in more parishioners and thus more money to fund church programs.
The Good Wife’s Religion Politics: Voters Have No Faith in Alicia's Atheism
Regina Lizik
November 24, 2014
“You have a drink with Mitch McConnell,” he pleaded with all two thousand-plus in attendance.
The Booze That Saved America
Kevin Bleyer
November 8, 2014
Affordability (20%): Net price of attendance after deducting grants and scholarship aid (NCES).
The Daily Beast College Rankings Methodology
Brandy Zadrozny
November 5, 2014

Historical Examples of attendance

It was trusted often, was in attendance on the Emperor, and was fairly well paid.
The Armourer's Prentices
Charlotte M. Yonge
Why, Nelly doesn't leave the house; I've stopped her attendance even at Barnard.
The Bacillus of Beauty
Harriet Stark
When must our Sunday's rest and our attendance at church be sacrificed?
An Explanation of Luther's Small Catechism
Joseph Stump
Yet it's only the food and the cabins and the attendance they grumble about.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
Everything was hired, and the mercenaries in attendance were profound strangers to me.
The Uncommercial Traveller
Charles Dickens

British Dictionary definitions for attendance

attendance

noun

the act or state of attending

the number of persons presentan attendance of 5000 at the festival

obsolete attendants collectively; retinue

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for attendance

late 14c., "act of attending to one's duties," from Old French atendance "attention, wait, hope, expectation," from atendant, present participle of atendre (see attend). Meaning "action of waiting on someone" dates from late 14c. (to dance attendance on someone is from 1560s); that of "action of being present, presenting oneself" (originally with intent of taking a part) is from mid-15c. Meaning "number of persons present" is from 1835.

Idioms and Phrases with attendance

attendance

see dance attendance on.