conduct

[kon-duhkt, kuhn-duhkt]

noun

1. personal behavior; way of acting; bearing or deportment.

   Synonyms: manners, actions, comportment, demeanor

2. direction or management; administration.

   the conduct of a business.

   Synonyms: government, guidance

3. the act of conducting; guidance.

   The curator's conduct through the museum was informative.

4. Obsolete.,  a guide; an escort.

verb (used with object)

1. to behave or manage (oneself).

   He conducted himself well.

   Synonyms: bear, deport

2. to direct in action or course; manage; carry on: to conduct a test.

   to conduct a meeting;

   to conduct a test.

   Synonyms: administer, supervise

3. to direct (an orchestra, chorus, etc.) as leader.

4. to lead or guide; escort.

   to conduct a tour.

5. to serve as a channel or medium for (heat, electricity, sound, etc.).

   Copper conducts electricity.

verb (used without object)

1. to lead.

2. to act as conductor, or leader of a musical group, by communicating a specific interpretation of the music to the performers by motions of a baton or the hands.

conduct

noun

1. the manner in which a person behaves; behaviour

2. the way of managing a business, affair, etc; handling

3. rare,  the act of guiding or leading

4. rare,  a guide or leader

verb

1. (tr) to accompany and guide (people, a party, etc) (esp in the phrase conducted tour )

2. (tr) to lead or direct (affairs, business, etc); control

3. (tr) to do or carry out

   conduct a survey

4. (tr) to behave or manage (oneself)

   the child conducted himself well

5. Also (esp US): direct. to control or guide (an orchestra, choir, etc) by the movements of the hands or a baton

6. to transmit (heat, electricity, etc)

   metals conduct heat

Other Word Forms

• conductible adjective
• conductibility noun
• nonconductibility noun
• nonconductible adjective
• preconduct verb (used with object)
• reconduct verb (used with object)
• unconductible adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of conduct¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; late Middle English, from Medieval Latin conductus “escort,” noun use of Latin conductus (past participle of condūcere “to lead, bring together”), equivalent to con- con- + duc- “to lead” + -tus past participle suffix; replacing Middle English conduyt(e), from Anglo-French, from Latin as above; conduit; conduce

Word History and Origins

Origin of conduct¹

C15: from Medieval Latin conductus escorted, from Latin: drawn together, from condūcere to _conduce

Synonym Study

See behavior.

Example Sentences

As part of its campaign, Mattel conducted a study to try to better understand why girls tend to stop participating in sports.

From Los Angeles Times

“I think the judge looked at his conduct and also took into account that he didn’t create this mess, he didn’t make any money out of it,” Cheronis said.

From Los Angeles Times

The lawsuit lays out years’ worth of discrimination allegations that culminated in what her attorney argues are baseless retaliatory internal affairs investigations probing her conduct.

From Los Angeles Times

While Badenoch was conducting a string of media interviews, Reform UK announced that 20 Conservative councillors were defecting.

From BBC

Animal welfare campaigners have expressed outrage at Marineland's conduct and the possibility the whales could be killed.

From BBC

Related Words

• attend 
• control 
• direct 
• handle 
• keep 
• manage 
• operate 
• order 
• organize 
• oversee 
• regulate 
• run 
• supervise 

When To Use

What are other ways to say conduct?

To conduct oneself is to behave or manage oneself. To conduct a tour is to lead or guide it. How does conduct compare to synonyms guide, direct, and lead? Find out on Thesaurus.com.