Definitions for performance
pərˈfɔr mənsper·for·mance

Princeton's WordNet(4.67 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. performance, public presentationnoun

   a dramatic or musical entertainment

   "they listened to ten different performances"; "the play ran for 100 performances"; "the frequent performances of the symphony testify to its popularity"

2. performancenoun

   the act of presenting a play or a piece of music or other entertainment

   "we congratulated him on his performance at the rehearsal"; "an inspired performance of Mozart's C minor concerto"

3. performance, execution, carrying out, carrying into actionnoun

   the act of performing; of doing something successfully; using knowledge as distinguished from merely possessing it

   "they criticised his performance as mayor"; "experience generally improves performance"

4. performancenoun

   any recognized accomplishment

   "they admired his performance under stress"; "when Roger Maris powered four home runs in one game his performance merits awe"

5. operation, functioning, performancenoun

   process or manner of functioning or operating

   "the power of its engine determines its operation"; "the plane's operation in high winds"; "they compared the cooking performance of each oven"; "the jet's performance conformed to high standards"

Wiktionary(3.67 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. performancenoun

   The act of performing; carrying into execution or action; execution; achievement; accomplishment; representation by action; as, the performance of an undertaking of a duty.

2. performancenoun

   That which is performed or accomplished; a thing done or carried through; an achievement; a deed; an act; a feat; especially, an action of an elaborate or public character.

3. performancenoun

   A live show or concert.

4. performancenoun

   In Computer science: The amount of useful work accomplished by a computer system compared to the time and resources used. Better Performance means more work accomplished in shorter time and/or using less resources

5. Etymology: From perform + -ance

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Performancenoun

   Etymology: from perform.

   1. Completion of something designed; execution of something promised.

   His promises were, as he then was, mighty;
   But his performance, as he now is, nothing. William Shakespeare.

   Promising is the very air o’ th’ time; it opens the eyes of expectation: performance is ever the duller for his act, and but in the plainer kind of people, the deed is quite out of use. William Shakespeare, Timon of Athens.

   Perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance. 2 Cor. viii. 11.

   The only means to make him successful in the performance of these great works, was to be above contempt. South.

   2. Composition; work.

   In the good poems of other men, I can only be sure, that ’tis the hand of a good master; but in your performances ’tis scarcely possible for me to be deceived. Dryden.

   Few of our comic performances give good examples. Claris.

   3. Action; something done.

   In this slumbry agitation, besides her walking and other actual performances, what have you heard her say? William Shakespeare.

Wikipedia(4.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Performance

   Performance is completion of a task with application of knowledge, skills and abilities.

Webster Dictionary(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Performancenoun

   the act of performing; the carrying into execution or action; execution; achievement; accomplishment; representation by action; as, the performance of an undertaking of a duty

2. Performancenoun

   that which is performed or accomplished; a thing done or carried through; an achievement; a deed; an act; a feat; esp., an action of an elaborate or public character

Freebase(3.33 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Performance

   A performance, in performing arts, generally comprises an event in which a performer or group of performers behave in a particular way for another group of people, the audience. Choral music and ballet are examples. Usually the performers participate in rehearsals beforehand. Afterwards audience members often applaud. The means of expressing appreciation can vary by culture. Chinese performers will clap with audience at the end of a performance; the return applause signals "thank you" to the audience. In Japan, folk performing arts performances commonly attract individuals who take photographs, sometimes getting up to the stage and within inches of performer's faces. Sometimes the dividing line between performer and the audience may become blurred, as in the example of "participatory theatre" where audience members get involved in the production. Theatrical performances can take place daily or at some other regular interval. Performances can take place at designated performance spaces, or in a non-conventional space, such as a subway station, on the street, or in someone's home.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. performance

   An act of performing.

   The children loved performing.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on January 9, 2020  

Matched Categories

1. • Accomplishment
   • Presentation
   • Process

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'performance' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #738

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'performance' in Written Corpus Frequency: #1805

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'performance' in Nouns Frequency: #279

How to pronounce performance?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say performance in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of performance in Chaldean Numerology is: 5

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of performance in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

Examples of performance in a Sentence

1. Antonio Simoes:

   Our third-quarter results showed very resilient performance for Hong Kong against the backdrop of what's happening, from a private banking perspective, we continue to have targets for Hong Kong that are very ambitious.

2. Ke Yan:

   While on one hand there's a lack of demand for the name given the limited upside in the online movie ticketing market in terms of market penetration, on the other hand, the upcoming Chinese holiday season could be another contributing factor for the thin volume and the poor performance.

3. Mark Fernandez:

   This launch represents the first step into the next frontier of space exploration—a mission to Mars, mars astronauts won’t have near-instant access to high performance computing like those in low-earth orbit do.

4. Ben Affleck:

   Ultimately my responsibility as an actor is an honest performance and having had that particular experience and knowing about alcoholism made me feel more confident sort of going,' Okay, this is sort of how this would feel and that would feel,' but the character suffers a terrible personal loss that I couldn't imagine. And that was scary because I didn't want to even think about it.

5. Justin Rose:

   I feel like the performance I put in at Augusta would have won many of those championships and I got beat by a better player on the week, i'm doing all the right things, it's just a matter of everything lining up again in one week.

Popularity rank by frequency of use