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experience Meaning & Definition

/ɪkˈspɪə.ɹi.ən(t)s/

What Does Experience Mean?

As a noun, experience means The effect upon the judgment or feelings produced by any event, whether witnessed or participated in; personal and direct impressions as contrasted with description or fancies; personal acquaintance; actual enjoyment or suffering. It is also used to mean An activity one has performed. As a verb, it means To observe certain events; undergo a certain feeling or process; or perform certain actions that may alter one or contribute to one's knowledge, opinions, or skills.

Word Facts for Experience

Part of speechnoun, verb
Pronunciation//ɪkˈspɪə.ɹi.ən(t)s//
Syllables1
Synonymshave, feel and live
Antonymsinexperience
Pluralexperiences
Verb formsexperiences, experiencing, experienced

Experience Definition (Noun)

  1. The effect upon the judgment or feelings produced by any event, whether witnessed or participated in; personal and direct impressions as contrasted with description or fancies; personal acquaintance; actual enjoyment or suffering.

    It was an experience he would not soon forget.

  2. An activity one has performed.
  3. A collection of events and/or activities from which an individual or group may gather knowledge, opinions, and skills.

    Virtually all employers now require jobseekers to have work experience even for entry-level roles. Many believe this will hurt companies in the long run.

  4. The knowledge thus gathered.
  5. A business offering in which a major focus is the way that the customer interacts with the business throughout the transaction, as opposed to only its outcome (the product or service).
  6. Synonym of experience points
  7. Trial; a test or experiment.

Experience as a Verb

  1. To observe certain events; undergo a certain feeling or process; or perform certain actions that may alter one or contribute to one's knowledge, opinions, or skills.

Synonyms of Experience

Experience synonyms and antonyms →

Antonyms of Experience

Experience in a Sentence

It was an experience he would not soon forget.

Virtually all employers now require jobseekers to have work experience even for entry-level roles. Many believe this will hurt companies in the long run.

Word Forms & Grammar

experience (countable and uncountable, plural experiences)

experience (third-person singular simple present experiences, present participle experiencing, simple past and past participle experienced)

Words That Rhyme With Experience

Origin of Experience

From Middle English experience, from Old French, from Latin experientia (“a trial, proof, experiment, experimental knowledge, experience”), from experiens, present participle of experiri (“to try, put to the test, undertake, undergo”), from ex (“out”) + peritus (“experienced, expert”), past participle of *periri (“to go through”); see expert and peril. Displaced native Old English āfandung (“experience”) and āfandian (“to experience”).

Experience Pronunciation

You say experience as //ɪkˈspɪə.ɹi.ən(t)s//. It has 1 syllable.

Common Questions About Experience

Is experience a noun or a verb?

Experience is mainly used as a noun, but it can also be used as a verb.

What is another word for experience?

Words with a similar meaning to experience include have, feel and live. See the full list of experience synonyms and antonyms.

What is the opposite of experience?

The opposite of experience is inexperience.

What is the plural of experience?

The plural of experience is experiences.

What is the past tense of experience?

The past tense of experience is experienced. The present participle is experiencing.

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