# practical

Pronunciation: say "PRAK-ti-kuhl" /ˈpɹæktɪkəl/

## Adjective

1. Likely to be effective and suited to a real situation, so that it can actually be put to use.
   - Simple: Useful and likely to work well in a real situation.
   - _The committee favored a practical solution over an elegant but untested one._
   - _These tools offer a practical way to manage your time._
2. Connected with doing things or based on experience of doing them, rather than on theories or untested ideas.
   - Simple: About doing real things instead of just ideas or theory.
   - _The degree balances theoretical study with practical experience in the field._
   - _Engineers need practical knowledge as well as mathematical theory._
3. Of a person: having useful skills and good sense for getting real things done.
   - Simple: Describes a person who is good at doing useful, real-world tasks.
   - _He's a practical sort who'd rather fix the fence than discuss it._
   - _Practical people tend to focus on what works rather than on grand ideas._
6. Of a stage or screen prop, having real, working functionality rather than being a mere imitation.
   - Simple: Describes a film or stage prop that really works and is not just a fake.
   - _The director insisted on a practical door with a lock that genuinely worked._
   - _Every weapon in the scene was practical, capable of firing blanks on cue._
7. Of a light source: serving as actual set lighting while remaining visible within the shot as part of the scenery.
   - Simple: Describes a light that lights the set and is also seen in the scene.
   - _The cinematographer relied on practical lighting from the table lamps in the room._
   - _Each practical fixture in the diner set had to read naturally on camera._

## Noun

4. A section of an exam in which the candidate must demonstrate a skill in person rather than in writing. *(British)*
   - Simple: A part of an exam where you must show a skill by doing it, not by writing.
   - _The driving practical tests whether you can actually handle a car on the road._
   - _Students sat their biology practical in the lab after lunch._
5. A laboratory experiment, test, or investigation carried out as a hands-on exercise.
   - Simple: A lab activity where students do an experiment or test themselves.
   - _Today's practical involves measuring the boiling point of several liquids._
   - _Each student writes up the practical as a formal lab report._
8. A prop that actually performs its function rather than being a mere imitation.
   - Simple: A stage or film prop that really works instead of just looking real.
   - _The props master labeled each practical so the crew knew which items truly worked._
   - _For the fight scene they needed a practical that could spray fake blood._
9. A light fixture that provides real set lighting while appearing within the frame as part of the scenery.
   - Simple: A light that lights the set and is also seen on screen as part of the scene.
   - _The string lights above the bar served as practicals during the night shoot._
   - _Cinematographers love a practical that flatters the actors while staying in shot._

## Origin

From Middle English practical (also spelled practicale and praktycall), which came from the Medieval Latin word practicālis.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/practical (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).