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Definition of competence noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

competence

noun
 
/ˈkɒmpɪtəns/
 
/ˈkɑːmpɪtəns/
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  1. (also less frequent competency)
    [uncountable, countable] competence (in something) | competence (in doing something) the ability to do something well
    • to gain a high level of competence in English
    • professional/technical competence
    see also communicative competence opposite incompetence
    Extra Examples
    • He gradually developed the competence to deal with the more difficult cases.
    • I'm afraid the work is beyond his competence.
    • She shows a high level of technical competence.
    • Students had questioned her competence as a teacher.
    • The company's core competence lay in engineering.
    • This should be well within your competence.
    • The course is aimed at developing professional competence in language teachers.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • great
    • basic
    • academic
    verb + competence
    • have
    • demonstrate
    • display
    preposition
    • beyond somebody’s competence
    • within somebody’s competence
    • competence as
    phrases
    • a level of competence
    • a standard of competence
    See full entry
  2. [uncountable] (law) the power that a court, an organization or a person has to deal with something
    • The judge has to act within the competence of the court.
    • outside somebody’s area of competence
    Extra Examples
    • The decisions come within the competence of the committee.
    • matters that fall outside the court's competence
    • The commission has no formal competence in cultural matters.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • formal
    • exclusive
    verb + competence
    • have
    preposition
    • outside somebody/​something’s competence
    • within somebody/​something’s competence
    phrases
    • an area of competence
    See full entry
  3. [countable]
    (also less frequent competency)
    (specialist) a skill that you need in a particular job or for a particular task
    • The syllabus lists the knowledge and competences required at this level.
    • You will agree with us a personal learning contract, based on an assessment of personal competences in relation to career objectives.
See competence in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee competence in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English

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