practitioner

American  

[prak-tish-uh-ner] / prækˈtɪʃ ə nər /

noun

practitioners plural

1. a person engaged in the practice of a profession, occupation, etc..

   a medical practitioner.

2. a person who practices something specified.

3. Christian Science. a person authorized to practice healing.

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practitioner British  

/ prækˈtɪʃənə /

noun

1. a person who practises a profession or art

2. Christian Science a person authorized to practise spiritual healing

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• practitioners
  plural

Etymology

Origin of practitioner

1535–45; alteration of practician ( practic + -ian ) + -er ¹

Explanation

A practitioner is an expert who uses that knowledge as part of a profession. Every yoga practitioner started by attending an introductory class. In practitioner, you can see the word practice, which everyone says will make you perfect. Practice can also mean the clients, daily activities, and location where a professional such as a doctor works. So a practitioner is someone who has learned everything about his or her field and is actively working in that field. So don't worry about going to the doctor — you won't be practice for this practitioner.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

practitioner practitioners

The review called for practitioner licensing, stronger training requirements and tighter controls over who should be allowed to perform cosmetic procedures.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

Lodge, 71, a veteran practitioner in this rather arcane field, is a man who’s both exactly what you’d expect him to be and perhaps not what you anticipated.

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

I started my career as a registered nurse and worked hard to become a nurse practitioner and educator, which wouldn’t have been possible without federal student loans.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026

When organizers went public in 2024, the university said it had “serious concerns — legal, academic, and operational — about a union purporting to represent almost all of our research, teaching, practitioner, and clinical faculty.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026

If he lives in London he may know people who have consulted the medical practitioner and astrologer Simon Forman, who uses magic to help them recover stolen goods.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Experts have attributed the cases to a lack of state regulation, the use of expired medicines and unqualified practitioners working illegally.

From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026

His analysis identified nearly 20,000 practitioners operating across the UK in 2025, compared with just over 3,500 identified as recently as 2023.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

Supporters of reform hope the proposed licensing scheme will eventually require both practitioners and premises to be licensed, too.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

In Colonial-era America, sculpture was a craft, not an art, its practitioners artisans who fashioned utilitarian objects like ships’ figureheads and shop signs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

It need hardly be said that the subtlest practitioners of doublethink are those who invented doublethink and know that it is a vast system of mental cheating.

From "1984" by George Orwell

Related Words

• doctor
• master
• professional
• specialist