performance
Americannoun
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performances
plural
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a musical, dramatic, or other entertainment presented before an audience.
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the act of performing a ceremony, play, piece of music, etc.
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the execution or accomplishment of work, acts, feats, etc.
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a particular action, deed, or proceeding.
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an action or proceeding of an unusual or spectacular kind.
His temper tantrum was quite a performance.
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the act of performing.
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the manner in which or the efficiency with which something reacts or fulfills its intended purpose.
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Linguistics. the actual use of language in real situations, which may or may not fully reflect a speaker's competence, being subject to such nonlinguistic factors as inattention, distraction, memory lapses, fatigue, or emotional state.
noun
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the act, process, or art of performing
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an artistic or dramatic production
last night's performance was terrible
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manner or quality of functioning
a machine's performance
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informal mode of conduct or behaviour, esp when distasteful or irregular
what did you mean by that performance at the restaurant?
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informal any tiresome procedure
what a performance dressing the children to play in the snow!
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any accomplishment
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linguistics (in transformational grammar) the form of the human language faculty, viewed as concretely embodied in speakers Compare competence langue parole
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of performance
Explanation
Performance has to do with doing something: a concert or play is a performance, and if you want to talk about how well the actors did, you'd rate their performance. The main sense of performance is artsy: actors and musicians (and other performers) give performances. You could praise an actor's performance in a movie, but this word extends to other kinds of work and accomplishments as well. If you're failing math, your performance is below par. An athlete can get in trouble for taking performance-enhancing drugs: drugs that make their performance better. Anytime you're talking about how something or someone works — or performs — you're talking about performance.
Vocabulary lists containing performance
Academy Awards, List 6
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myPerspectives 8.3
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 6
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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.
See Examples For:
Turner entered a contract year coming off a 2025 performance that featured seven sacks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
Kazakhstan's Rybakina produced a brilliant performance to beat two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka 6-4 5-7 6-2 in Saturday's final and repeat her Australian Open success against the same player in January.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Spontaneous musical participation at a show is not quite the same as a choral performance, I’ll grant you.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
Between 2018 and 2025, reading performance fell in some three-fourths of countries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
“You didn’t miss a word. Between this and your performance with the Metz incident, I wouldn’t be surprised if you get a presidential commendation.”
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
Known for his high-energy performances, he wowed fans with his dance routines to songs including Hass Hass and Born to Shine.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
"I'm so proud that people are resonating with the story, with the performances, the character," he said.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Strong performances are elicited from José Eduardo Moreno, who plays Klion’s son Hemon, Antíkona’s fiancé, and Zilah Mendoza, who plays Cihuatlahtoani Euridice, Klion’s wife.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
A look at the ‘little tigers’ post-IPO performances suggests that investors aren’t convinced about the GPU startups’ prospects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Volpe never doubts that his kids can grasp the complexities that he sees in their roles and deliver performances worthy of the program’s high ambition and its legacy of excellence.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
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.
