perform
Formsperforms, performing, performed
- 1To do or carry out a task or action.
Like going through each step of a recipe to finish the meal.
Doctors perform many tests before surgery.
She performed the experiment twice to be sure.
UsageWe perform tests, operations, and tasks. For simple everyday jobs, just say do.
Similarconduct, execute, undertake, do, complete
Note
- 2To sing, dance, act, play music, or put on another kind of show for an audience.
Like putting on a show for a crowd that came to watch.
The band will perform at the festival next weekend.
She performed a piano piece for the whole school.
UsageYou perform a song, perform at a place, and perform for people.
Note
- 3
Less common meanings
- 4To do what you agreed to do in a contract.
Like doing every chore your job list says you must do.
Both companies must perform the contract on time.
She performed her side of the deal without complaint.
Note
- 5To make a show of a feeling or quality that you may not really have.
Like smiling for a photo when you are actually sad.
Politicians often perform sincerity they don't truly feel.
She performed calm even as everything fell apart.
UsageYou perform a feeling, like perform calm, when you only show it.
Similarfeign, fake, affect, simulate
Note
- 6To express and help shape a social role, identity, or idea through how you act, dress, or speak.
Like an actor playing a part that slowly changes the story itself.
People perform gender in many small daily actions.
Through their clothes and the way they talk, teens perform who they want to be.
Note
- 7Of a man, to be able to have sex successfully.
Many men find it hard to perform when they are anxious.
He couldn't perform after drinking too much.
UsageOften in unable to perform or pressure to perform.
Note
Practice
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Origin
It came through Middle English and Anglo-Norman from Old French words meaning "to complete or accomplish." The main part comes from an old Germanic word meaning "to accomplish or furnish."
Checked 6 Nov 2026 · 4 facts
- The word passed through Middle English and Anglo-Norman. en.wiktionary.org
- Its Old French antecedents meant to complete or accomplish. en.wiktionary.org
- The verbal root comes from Germanic, but the prefix par- comes from Latin per-. en.wiktionary.org
- The Germanic antecedent meant to accomplish or furnish. en.wiktionary.org