competences

noun

plural of competence
as in abilities
the physical or mental power to do something questioned his competence to finish the task without help

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of competences Over billions of years, increasingly greater competences evolved. — Jonny Thomson, Big Think, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for competences
  1. abilities
  2. competencies
Noun
  • Unsurprisingly, no player has been involved in more passing sequences leading to shots than the 24-year-old this summer, given complete freedom to roam and dictate attacks with his abilities on the ball.
    — Thom Harris, New York Times, 4 July 2026
  • Employment Networks and Vocational Rehabilitation agencies can help beneficiaries evaluate these options in the context of their goals, abilities and circumstances.
    — Diane Winiarski, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Definition of abilities
Noun
  • Those leading campus organizations are building competencies in communication, budgeting and conflict resolution.
    — Dr. Milpha Blamo, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026
  • This perspective informs Mentor126’s direction and involves the same three competencies any human mentor would use.
    — Wyles Daniel, USA Today, 9 June 2026
Definition of competencies

Browse Nearby Words

competence
competences
competencies
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Competences.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/competences. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on competences

Nglish: Translation of competences for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All