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:
Determined by a mix of firm and individual performance, employees’ bonuses can elicit reactions of euphoria or stinging disappointment—depending on the size of the check, and the expectations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
The layout made the space feel more expansive and interactive than just watching a performance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
The free-cash-flow performance from the latest quarter was a particular high point, Shao wrote.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
Arraez came up as a second baseman, but over time, his poor performance there shifted him over to the less-demanding first base position.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Aunt Kitty may have heard enough, but my ears never tired of listening to Mr. Pinkerton and Detective Webster compliment my performance.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
As we celebrate “Revolver”’s 60th anniversary, I have come to see the album as The Beatles’ thrilling turning point — in many ways, a continuation of their virtuosic performances on “Rubber Soul.”
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
For Shawn Hatosy, Gerran Howell and Patrick Ball, each nominated for an Emmy for supporting actor in a drama series, that meant very different performances.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
It also helps that the characters are drawn with precision and nuance, allowing the actors to shape their performances with assurance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
However, they expect cyclicals to lead into the second half of the year, and also expect consumer cyclicals could see better performances ahead.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026
Don't just tune at the beginning of rehearsals and performances.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
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.
