- present participle of proceed.
proceeding
Americannoun
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proceedings
plural
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a particular action or course or manner of action.
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proceedings, a series of activities or events; happenings.
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the act of a person or thing that proceeds.
Our proceeding down the mountain was hindered by mud slides.
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proceedings, a record of the doings or transactions of a fraternal, academic, etc., society.
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Law. proceedings,
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the instituting or carrying on of an action at law.
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a legal step or measure.
to institute proceedings against a person.
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noun
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an act or course of action
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the institution of a legal action
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any step taken in a legal action
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(plural) the minutes of the meetings of a club, society, etc
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(plural) legal action; litigation
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(plural) the events of an occasion, meeting, etc
Usage
What are other ways to say proceeding?
The noun proceeding refers to a particular course or manner of action. The plural proceedings refers to a series of activities or events, or to a record of the doings or transactions of a social club or academic society. Do you know when to use proceedings instead of procedure or process? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of proceeding
late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at proceed, -ing 1
Explanation
The noun proceeding (often pluralized as proceedings) is used in legal settings to show something is happening, or moving forward: "During the legal proceedings the judge declared him mentally unbalanced." Most of the time, the noun proceeding is used in law to show that a sequence of actions have taken place, leading up to judgment day in court. If you move forward with legal proceedings, you might start by filing a lawsuit or a claim against someone. Outside of the law, the noun is also used to show the steps taken, that there is involvement with a process or venture, or that progress is being made: "He took the necessary proceedings to make sure everything was okay."
Vocabulary lists containing proceeding
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Crucible
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"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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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:
Everton's move for Folarin Balogun collapsed after the player decided against proceeding with a transfer.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
Is the U.S. willing to climb the sanctions ladder, proceeding from those small refineries to target the Chinese state-owned banks and other institutions that sustain them?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
Democratic state Sen. César Blanco, whose district includes the area, told the Tribune after the meeting that Scott acknowledged a need to hear input from locals before proceeding.
From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026
"The police investigation is proceeding at full speed," police added in their statement on Saturday.
From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026
Surprisingly, despite the dead light and everything falling apart, the day in the Glade appeared to be proceeding business as usual—farming, gardening, cleaning.
From "The Maze Runner" by James Dashner
This documentary drama, created by Elizabeth Marvel and director Lee Sunday Evans, is composed from the verbatim transcripts of these painful proceedings.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
He said Officer 2 had resigned from the service and that Officer 3 had been suspended and was facing disciplinary proceedings, which could lead to his dismissal.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
His sole memory from the trial is of his brother waving at him during the only day he attended the proceedings.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Dressed in a dark suit and white shirt with no tie, the former president sat with his chin resting on his hands as proceedings opened.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
Soon after the grand jury proceedings began, in early January, one of Hale’s cronies—a pastor—was charged with committing perjury on the stand.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
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.
