Proficiency

prəˈfɪʃənsi

nounmedium📊CommonSkill
1 meaning2 idioms/phrases3 questions

Definitions

1

The competence or skill in a particular field or activity.

prəˈfɪʃənsi

nounneutralmedium
Skill

The state of being skilled or expert.

Her proficiency in coding allowed her to quickly develop the software.

💡 Simply: Being super good at something! Like, if you can play a video game without dying, you have great proficiency in that game.

👶 For kids: Being really, really good at something you do, like riding a bike without falling!

More Examples

2

The test evaluated the candidate's proficiency in written communication.

3

Achieving proficiency in a foreign language takes dedication and practice.

How It's Used

Education

"Students are assessed on their proficiency in various subjects."

Professional

"The company looks for candidates with high proficiency in Microsoft Office."

Language Learning

"She demonstrated a high level of proficiency in Spanish."

Idioms & expressions

demonstrate proficiency

To show or prove that you are skilled or knowledgeable in something.

"The applicant was able to demonstrate proficiency in several programming languages during the interview."

attain proficiency

To achieve a high level of skill or competence.

"It took years of practice to attain proficiency in playing the piano."

From Middle English proficiencie, from Old French proficience, from Latin proficientia, from proficere ('to make progress').

The word 'proficiency' has been used since the 14th century, initially referring to progress or advancement.

Memory tip

Think of PROF-iciency as being PROF-essional at something.

Word Origin

LanguageLatin
Original meaning

"to make progress, advance"

demonstrate proficiencyattain proficiencyproficiency ina high level of proficiencyimprove proficiency

Common misspellings

proficencyprofiencyproficiancy

Usage

30%Spoken
70%Written