competence
competence Lexical Profile
competence Game Scores & Validity
• noun
The ability to do something successfully or efficiently; the possession of required skill, knowledge, qualification, or capacity.
"The surgeon demonstrated exceptional technical competence throughout the complex procedure."
The legal authority of a court or other official body to deal with a particular matter, or the mental capacity of a person to participate in legal proceedings.
"The defense attorney requested a psychiatric evaluation to determine the defendant's competence to stand trial."
A speaker's unconscious, internalized knowledge of the grammatical rules of a language, contrasted with actual linguistic performance.
"In generative linguistics, a distinction is drawn between a native speaker's underlying grammatical competence and their everyday speech."
Word Nuance & Usage
While "competence" and "competency" are largely interchangeable in general contexts, "competence" typically refers to a person's overall state of capability, whereas "competency" (often pluralized as "competencies") is preferred in business and education to denote a specific, measurable skill.
• Rhymes for competence
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 16th century from French compétence, from Latin competentia ('meeting together, symmetry, sufficiency'), from competere ('to strive together, coincide, be fit or proper').