# practise

Pronunciation: say "PRAK-tis" /ˈpɹæktɪs/

## Verb

1. To do an activity repeatedly in order to build up your skill at it.
   - Simple: To do something again and again so that you get better at it.
   - _Pupils practise their spellings every evening in the week before the test._
   - _He has been practising his serve all week ahead of the tournament._
2. To do something regularly or put it into action as a habit or way of life, such as a religion, a custom, a method, a principle or a piece of advice.
   - Simple: To do something often as part of your life, or to act in the way a belief or rule says.
   - _Families in the valley have practised the same farming methods for generations._
   - _The freedom to practise any religion is protected by law._
3. To follow a profession as your career, most often law, medicine or fine art.
   - Simple: To work in a skilled job, especially as a lawyer, a doctor or an artist.
   - _Her father practised medicine in a small Yorkshire town for most of his life._
   - _After qualifying as a solicitor, she went on to practise law in Manchester._

## Verb

4. To train someone, or make them used to something, through repeated practice. *(rare)*
   - Simple: To train someone or get them used to doing something by having them do it repeatedly.
5. To put someone or something to work for a particular purpose. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To use a person or a thing to get something done.
6. To plot together in secret, usually against someone. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To make secret plans together to do something wrong or harmful.

## Origin

Our word continues Middle English practizen, itself a variant of practisen, which came from Middle French pratiser or practiser. That came from Medieval Latin practizo, and that in turn from Late Latin practico ("to do, perform, exercise"), formed from prāctica ("practical affairs, business"). The Latin word traces back to Ancient Greek prāktikḗ, from prāktikós ("practical"), based on prā́ssein ("to do"); its deepest root is a Proto-Indo-European one meaning "to go over, cross".

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