presentation

American  

[prez-uhn-tey-shuhn, pree-zen-] / ˌprɛz ənˈteɪ ʃən, ˌpri zɛn- /

noun

• presentations
  plural

1. an act of presenting.

2. the state of being presented.

3. a social introduction, as of a person at court.

4. an exhibition or performance, as of a play or film.

5. offering, delivering, or bestowal, as of a gift.

6. a gift.

7. a demonstration, lecture, or welcoming speech.

8. a manner or style of speaking, instructing, or putting oneself forward.

   His presentation was very poor.

9. Commerce. the presentment of a bill, note, or the like.

10. Obstetrics.

    1. the position of the fetus in the uterus during labor.

    2. the appearance of a particular part of the fetus at the cervix during labor.

       a breech presentation.

11. Ecclesiastical. the act or the right of presenting a member of the clergy to the bishop for institution to a benefice.

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presentation British  

/ ˌprɛzənˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of presenting or state of being presented

2. the manner of presenting, esp the organization of visual details to create an overall impression

   the presentation of the project is excellent but the content poor

3. the method of presenting

   his presentation of the facts was muddled

4. a verbal report presented with illustrative material, such as slides, graphs, etc

   a presentation on the company results

5. 1. an offering or bestowal, as of a gift

   2. ( as modifier )

      a presentation copy of a book

6. a performance or representation, as of a play

7. the formal introduction of a person, as into society or at court; debut

8. the act or right of nominating a clergyman to a benefice

9. med the position of a baby relative to the birth canal at the time of birth

10. commerce another word for presentment

11. television linking material between programmes, such as announcements, trailers, or weather reports

12. an archaic word for gift

13. philosophy a sense datum

14. (often capital) another name for (feast of) Candlemas

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonpresentation
  noun
• self-presentation
  noun
• presentational
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• presentations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of presentation

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin praesentātiōn-, stem of praesentātiō “exhibition, showing, nomination to a benefice, religious dedication”; equivalent to present ² + -ation

Explanation

The noun presentation means the official giving, or presenting, of something. The presentation of diplomas at a graduation ceremony is the part that makes many of the parents in the audience cry. A presentation can be a ceremony of giving some gift or award, and it can also be a demonstration or show — like a dog training presentation at your local pet store. Another meaning of presentation is a style of displaying something — like the presentation of plants and flowers in the florist's window or the presentation of food on a buffet table. In the 1600s, presentation was commonly used to mean "show or play," as in "a theatrical presentation."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

presentation presentations

I observed that the audience seemed to tune out because it was so difficult to hear the presentation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

The patriotic presentation is lifting some people's spirits.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

“And at the end of that presentation, I had people asking when they could buy it. That’s the interesting thing about AI,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

She could be seen shaking her head and closing her eyes during Kissane's presentation, national broadcaster ABC said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026

It turned out to be a bigger event than anybody expected because the pizza-parlor ovens caught fire half an hour before the presentation.

From "The Best School Year Ever" by Barbara Robinson

There are support groups and workshops for caregivers, as well as live music, theater, dance and history presentations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

Yet even the museum’s digital presentations of films initially shot on VistaVision feel special.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026

The committee's report referenced a BBC investigation which found the government compared Plan 2 student loan repayments to £30-a-month phone contracts in promotional presentations to teenagers a decade ago.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

The recognition followed years of fossil analysis, scientific publications, conference presentations, and his influential 2002 book about the giant crocodilian.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 5, 2026

Some shook their heads north and south, some shook their heads east and west There were others who, in the middle of our presentations, simply pointed us to the door.

From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia

Related Words

• appearance
• delivery
• demonstration
• display
• introduction
• offering
• production
• proposal
• reception
• show
• submission