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Who was the first American to conduct an opera at Milan's La Scala?

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conduct

American  

[kon-duhkt, kuhn-duhkt] / ˈkɒn dʌkt, kənˈdʌkt /

noun

1. personal behavior; way of acting; bearing or deportment.

   Synonyms:

   manners, actions, comportment, demeanor

2. direction or management; administration.

   the conduct of a business.

   Synonyms:

   government, guidance

3. the act of conducting; guidance.

   The curator's conduct through the museum was informative.

4. Obsolete. a guide; an escort.

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verb (used with object)

• conducts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• conducted,
  past participle,  past
• conducting
  present participle

1. to behave or manage (oneself).

   He conducted himself well.

   Synonyms:

   bear, deport

2. to direct in action or course; manage; carry on: to conduct a test.

   to conduct a meeting;

   to conduct a test.

   Synonyms:

   administer, supervise

3. to direct (an orchestra, chorus, etc.) as leader.

4. to lead or guide; escort.

   to conduct a tour.

5. to serve as a channel or medium for (heat, electricity, sound, etc.).

   Copper conducts electricity.

verb (used without object)

• conducts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• conducted,
  past participle,  past
• conducting
  present participle

1. to lead.

2. to act as conductor, or leader of a musical group, by communicating a specific interpretation of the music to the performers by motions of a baton or the hands.

conduct British  

noun

1. the manner in which a person behaves; behaviour

2. the way of managing a business, affair, etc; handling

3. rare the act of guiding or leading

4. rare a guide or leader

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verb

1. (tr) to accompany and guide (people, a party, etc) (esp in the phrase conducted tour )

2. (tr) to lead or direct (affairs, business, etc); control

3. (tr) to do or carry out

   conduct a survey

4. (tr) to behave or manage (oneself)

   the child conducted himself well

5. Also (esp US): direct. to control or guide (an orchestra, choir, etc) by the movements of the hands or a baton

6. to transmit (heat, electricity, etc)

   metals conduct heat

Usage

What are other ways to say conduct?

To conduct oneself is to behave or manage oneself. To conduct a tour is to lead or guide it. How does conduct compare to synonyms guide, direct, and lead? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Synonym Usage

See behavior.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• conductibility
  noun
• nonconductibility
  noun
• preconduct
  verb (used with object)
• reconduct
  verb (used with object)
• conductible
  adjective
• nonconductible
  adjective
• unconductible
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• conducting
  present
• conducted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• conduct
  simple
• conducts
  simple
• have conducted
  perfect
• has conducted
  perfect
• am conducting
  progressive
• are conducting
  progressive
• is conducting
  progressive
• have been conducting
  perfect progressive
• has been conducting
  perfect progressive

Past

• conducted
  simple
• had conducted
  perfect
• was conducting
  progressive
• were conducting
  progressive
• had been conducting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will conduct
  simple
• will have conducted
  perfect
• will be conducting
  progressive
• will have been conducting
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of conduct

First recorded in 1250–1300; late Middle English, from Medieval Latin conductus “escort,” noun use of Latin conductus (past participle of condūcere “to lead, bring together”), equivalent to con- con- + duc- “to lead” + -tus past participle suffix; replacing Middle English conduyt(e), from Anglo-French, from Latin as above; see conduit; conduce

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Explanation

The noun conduct refers to behavior, like how students are rewarded for good conduct. The verb conduct means carry something through, as in "to conduct a survey." And if you lead an orchestra, you conduct it. Your conduct (accent on the first syllable), or your own behavior, is the way you conduct (accent on the second syllable), or lead, yourself. Keep the accent on the second syllable to conduct, or lead, an orchestra, and to conduct an interview by asking someone questions. Also, metals like copper or gold conduct electricity by letting the electricity pass through.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

conduct conducts conducted conducting

Wedgewood appears to have charged clients to conduct surveys on their behalf, a standard practice for aboveboard polling firms that could in this case amount to fraud.

From Slate ● Oct. 22, 2026

Vrabel was hit with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

Professor Daniel Blumstein of the University of California, Los Angeles, who helped conduct the research, said the results were convincing despite the lack of an explanation.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026

We showed our recordings to Bryony Rest, who described Alias's conduct as amounting to "perverting the course of justice", and said he should be struck off.

From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026

“First, tell me how I may reach Caer Dathyl as quickly as possible. Second, I beg you to conduct this girl safely to her own people.”

From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander

Allies are currently bracing for possible cuts to US forces in Europe as the Pentagon conducts a review of its deployments on the continent.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

Maria doesn’t buy this story and, aided by a local lawyer who drew up her father’s will, conducts her own furtive investigation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

County Chief Executive Joseph Nicchitta has said mandatory arbitration would amount to a “seismic change” in how the county conducts labor negotiations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

Because platinum conducts electricity, the lens also functioned as an electrode.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 29, 2026

After your fingerprints are submitted, the FBI conducts a thorough background check.

From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi

Her team's instrument uses two lasers rather than one, building on theoretical research conducted by Müller and his collaborators.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026

But on Wednesday, Boreal said it had conducted a further investigation into the allegations.

From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026

These studies were all conducted in the last 15 or so years.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026

The GQ interview with Prince Harry was conducted last month and released as the Royal Family were on duty in Windsor welcoming the Sultan of Oman at the start of a state visit.

From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026

John Blacking: An interview conducted and edited by Keith Howard.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Weissenborn and Hennig are already conducting additional experiments focused on highly radioactive transuranic phases found in the remaining debris.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026

Legitimate pollsters strive to be transparent about who’s conducting them, who’s funding them, and the methods they use.

From Slate ● Oct. 22, 2026

Nasser in an interview aired Thursday on Al Arabiya Business said the company is conducting engineering studies for additional crude-export routes as it works to reduce its exposure to disruptions along major shipping corridors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

Eilish Rothney, a nature reserve manager for the Trinity Broads at the Norfolk Wildlife Trust, found wasps buzzing around the room in June, when she returned from conducting surveys.

From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026

For the last 33 years, while conducting biological exploration in New Guinea, I have been spending my field time there constantly in the company of New Guineans who still use wild plants and animals extensively.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

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