competency
Americannoun
plural
competenciesnoun
-
law capacity to testify in a court of law; eligibility to be sworn
-
a less common word for competence competence
Other Word Forms
- noncompetency noun
Etymology
Origin of competency
First recorded in 1585–95; from Middle French, from Medieval Latin competentia “expertise, suitability,” in Latin: “agreement, proportion, symmetry,” equivalent to competent + -cy
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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.
The audio was part of more than 100 phone calls between the ex-fashion boss and Matthew Smith referred to during a four-day mental competency hearing this week on Long Island.
From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026
In the absence of ethnic studies, groups like Radical Monarchs help bridge the lack of racial diversity and cultural competency in schools.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026
Threading the needle between investors’ need for information and a company’s ability to focus on its core competency isn’t easy—but in some ways the SEC’s proposal fails at both.
From Barron's • Mar. 17, 2026
Slowinski also noted that financial analysis appears to be a core competency for OpenAI’s newest GPT-5.4 model, marking another challenge to Anthropic’s enterprise strongholds.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 6, 2026
The core competency there is speed and accuracy,” explained Glocer.
From "The World Is Flat" by Thomas L. Friedman
Definitions 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.
