practice

American  

[prak-tis] / ˈpræk tɪs /

British, practise

noun

• practices
  plural

1. habitual or customary performance; operation.

   office practice.

2. habit; custom.

   It is not the practice here for men to wear long hair.

3. repeated performance or systematic exercise for the purpose of acquiring skill or proficiency.

   Practice makes perfect.

   Synonyms:

   application

4. condition arrived at by experience or exercise.

   She refused to play the piano, because she was out of practice.

5. the action or process of performing or doing something.

   to put a scheme into practice;

   the shameful practices of a blackmailer.

6. the exercise or pursuit of a profession or occupation, especially law or medicine.

   She plans to set up practice in her hometown.

7. the business of a professional person.

   The doctor wanted his daughter to take over his practice when he retired.

8. Law. the established method of conducting legal proceedings.

9. Archaic. plotting; intrigue; trickery.

10. Archaic. Usually practices. intrigues; plots.

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verb (used with object)

• practices,
  present (3rd person singular)
• practiced,
  past participle,  past
• practicing
  present participle

1. to perform or do habitually or usually.

   to practice a strict regimen.

2. to follow or observe habitually or customarily.

   to practice one's religion.

3. to exercise or pursue as a profession, art, or occupation.

   to practice law.

4. to perform or do repeatedly in order to acquire skill or proficiency.

   to practice the violin.

5. to train or drill (a person, animal, etc.) in something in order to give proficiency.

verb (used without object)

• practices,
  present (3rd person singular)
• practiced,
  past participle,  past
• practicing
  present participle

1. to do something habitually or as a practice.

2. to pursue a profession, especially law or medicine.

3. to exercise oneself by repeated performance in order to acquire skill.

   to practice at shooting.

4. Archaic. to plot or conspire.

practice British  

/ ˈpræktɪs /

noun

1. a usual or customary action or proceeding

   it was his practice to rise at six

   he made a practice of stealing stamps

2. repetition or exercise of an activity in order to achieve mastery and fluency

3. the condition of having mastery of a skill or activity through repetition (esp in the phrases in practice, out of practice )

4. the exercise of a profession

   he set up practice as a lawyer

5. the act of doing something

   he put his plans into practice

6. the established method of conducting proceedings in a court of law

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verb

1. the US spelling of practise

practice Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing practice

• in practice
• make a practice of
• out of practice
• put into practice
• sharp practice

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Usage

What’s the difference between practice and practise? In British English (and many other international varieties of English), the spelling practice is used when the word is a noun, while the spelling practise is used when it’s a verb. In American English, the spelling practice is always used, regardless of whether the word is used as a verb or a noun. This is somewhat similar to the difference in spelling between advice (noun) and advise (verb)—a distinction that’s used in both British and American English. However, unlike advice and advise, practice and practise are always pronounced the same. Here is an example of how practice and practise would be used in the same sentence in British English. Example: Remember, practice makes perfect—the more you practise, the better you will get. Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between practice and practise.

Synonym Usage

See custom. See exercise.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mispractice
  noun
• nonpractice
  noun
• practicer
  noun
• prepractice
  verb
• outpractice
  verb (used with object)
• overpractice
  verb (used with object)
• repractice
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• practices
  plural

Participles

• practicing
  present
• practiced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• practice
  simple
• practices
  simple
• have practiced
  perfect
• has practiced
  perfect
• am practicing
  progressive
• are practicing
  progressive
• is practicing
  progressive
• have been practicing
  perfect progressive
• has been practicing
  perfect progressive

Past

• practiced
  simple
• had practiced
  perfect
• was practicing
  progressive
• were practicing
  progressive
• had been practicing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will practice
  simple
• will have practiced
  perfect
• will be practicing
  progressive
• will have been practicing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of practice

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English verb practisen, practizen, from Middle French pra(c)tiser, from Medieval Latin prāctizāre, alteration of prācticāre, derivative of prāctica “practical work,” from Greek prāktikḗ, noun use of feminine of prāktikós; noun derivative of the verb; see practic ( def. ), -ize ( def. )

Explanation

Practice can be a noun or a verb, but either way it's about how things are done on a regular basis. You can practice shotput every day because your town has a practice of supporting track-and-field events. One can practice the tuba for hours on end, repeating the same song over and over, serving to both get better at the tuba and to convince the neighbors they should move to Florida. You could learn the common practice of offering a guest a beverage when they arrive at your party, if you care to be polite. One can also practice a profession or a religion, as in “I practice Buddhism and I have a booming international law practice.”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

practice practices practiced practicing

Frank Blake had plenty of practice with his Belfast accent after roles in Trespasses and Say Nothing.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

South Korea's men's volleyball players were forced to cancel their practice on Monday morning after an official bus went to the incorrect place.

From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026

A team at the Boston, Ma.-headquartered company, led by David Crawford, head of the global technology practice unit, estimated that by 2031, annual spending on AI infrastructure could rise to $1.5 trillion.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

In practice, the expansion of the universe places regions beyond our cosmic horizon permanently out of reach, so such a journey remains a theoretical thought experiment.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026

I practice steering the wagon while he and Caesar walk, discussing the same plans.

From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Meta has had controversies around its privacy-related practices in the past, but it said it doesn’t share any data from Muse with its core advertising business.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026

Ingold said that she teaches samizdat to combat these practices.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

The researchers say this suggests that gender identity was recognized from an early stage of life and was reflected in burial practices.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 27, 2026

Instead, organisations including GP practices, hospitals and specialist clinics maintain their own records and determine who can view particular information.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

The fight for jobs was an old one, and little had changed in Durham since Louis Austin protested discriminatory hiring practices in 1953.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

The play hadn’t been practiced in two weeks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026

Solmssen practiced law and maintained a second career as a writer, publishing five novels as well as nonfiction work.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

Employers have reported concerns in precisely those areas, though those skills can also be taught and practiced.

From Salon ● Sep. 23, 2026

Together, the chemical evidence and distinctive tooth damage suggest that hunter-gatherers in Sulawesi practiced habitual betel nut sucking over long periods, leaving striking physical changes in their teeth.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026

He’d practiced that in the bathroom mirror, squinting his eyes to get a fierce look.

From "I Survived Hurricane Katrina, 2005" by Lauren Tarshis

The earliest scientific accounts of elephants practicing "self-medication" date back to the early third century.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

After practicing law for about six months and finding the work boring, he moved to Los Angeles in 1996 to find a job in the music industry.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026

Much of my life is dedicated to preaching that art, and practicing reverence for it can be the glue that keeps us together when the world wants us torn apart.

From Salon ● Sep. 17, 2026

But an insurance policy for your pet doesn’t simply wipe those costs away, noted Quammen, a practicing veterinarian.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

I was worried about what she’d said, but I kept my mind occupied by practicing my vocabulary words until the light was completely gone.

From "The World According to Humphrey" by Betty G. Birney

Related Words

• form
• habit
• method
• proceeding
• process
• rule
• system
• tradition
• use