expertise
1 Americanverb (used with or without object)
noun
Etymology
Origin of expertise
First recorded in 1865–70; from French: “survey, report (made by experts),” with -ise understood as an abstract noun suffix; see expert, -ise 2
Explanation
When you're an expert at something, you show expertise — or an exceptional knowledge of the subject. "He had expertise in accounting, having excelled in math, but he had even more expertise in dancing, his hobby since a small child." Expertise has obvious roots in the word expert. Just about any interest or field has a place for experts. Just as one individual has expertise in world religions, another may have expertise in computer gaming. Working hard or immersing yourself in a specialty leads to expertise, and it comes through both study and hands-on experience.
Vocabulary lists containing expertise
Academic Vocabulary Toolkit 1, Words 41-50
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"The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak, Part Eight
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English Words Derived from French, List 4
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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.
In what was once a cottage industry, startups worth billions now pay humans to distill their hard-won subject-area expertise into lessons for the bots.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
That is the result of its acquisition of 75% of Motivair External link in February 2025, which brought expertise in cooling distribution units and direct-to-chip cooling plates in house.
From Barron's • Apr. 16, 2026
"I think the next owner of Thames Water should be an experienced, credible, long-term focused operator with the expertise and the resources to fix Thames Water," he said.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026
CFAs have more technical expertise and usually pursue careers in risk or portfolio management.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 15, 2026
From there, Booth began adding others, selecting them based on expertise with weapons, physical fitness, and knowledge of southern Maryland’s back roads and waterways.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
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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.