execution

American  

[ek-si-kyoo-shuhn] / ˌɛk sɪˈkju ʃən /

noun

executions plural

1. the act or process of executing.

2. the state or fact of being executed.

3. the infliction of capital punishment or, formerly, of any legal punishment.

4. the process of performing a judgment or sentence of a court.

   The judge stayed execution of the sentence pending appeal.

5. a mode or style of performance; technical skill, as in music.

   The pianist's execution of the sonata was consummate.

6. effective, usually destructive action, or the result attained by it (usually preceded bydo ).

   The grenades did rapid execution.

7. Law. a judicial writ directing the enforcement of a judgment.

8. Computers. the act of running, or the results of having run, a program or routine, or the performance of an instruction.

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execution British  

/ ˌɛksɪˈkjuːʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of executing

2. the carrying out or undergoing of a sentence of death

3. the style or manner in which something is accomplished or performed; technique

   as a pianist his execution is poor

4. 1. the enforcement of the judgment of a court of law

   2. the writ ordering such enforcement

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonexecution
  noun
• preexecution
  noun
• reexecution
  noun
• executional
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• executions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of execution

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English execucioun, from Latin ex(s)ecūtiōn-, stem of ex(s)ecūtiō “accomplishment, performance”; equivalent to execute + -ion

Explanation

The planning stage of building a tree house is the fun part — the hard part is the execution of your plan. Execution is taking an idea and actually making it happen. The execution of a plan is when you put it into effect, like the execution on the field of a football team's game plan. It can also mean the style in which a project is carried out, like a ballet's creative execution. Execution can also refer to the death of a person, either a prisoner who's been sentenced to death by a court of law, or a deliberate, targeted murder, especially when it's done for political reasons.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

execution executions

But when Kore-eda’s execution isn’t as assured, as is the case with his latest, all that delicacy simply floats off into the ether, rarely amounting to much more than a halfhearted shrug.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

A video also smuggled out of prison showed him singing a patriotic song in the prison yard ahead of execution.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

Chief Executive Jim Vena attributed the recent quarterly results to strong execution and volume growth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

Rusch, meanwhile, called the results “uninspiring” and cut his profit expectations, citing Tesla’s “substantial” execution risks and need for capital.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026

I managed to nail the execution of both and got the coveted thumbs-up from Martha.

From "Courage to Soar" by Simone Biles

He wrote a court opinion in 2005 ending executions for murderers who were under age 18 at the time of their crime.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026

Following a number of other controversial executions and a series of miscarriages of justice it was permanently abolished for murder in 1969.

From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026

Fifty years after the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty as constitutionally permissible after a brief ban, these figures are a reminder that executions still play a role in American life.

From Slate ● Jun. 8, 2026

Human rights activists reported four executions so far this year of people accused of links to the Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence service.

From BBC ● May 3, 2026

Even in Texas, where nearly 40 percent of the nearly 1,400 modern-era executions in the United States had taken place, the death-sentencing rate had dropped dramatically, and the pace of executions had finally slowed.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson