competent

[ kom-pi-tuhnt ]

adjective

1. having suitable or sufficient skill, knowledge, experience, etc., for some purpose; properly qualified:

   He is perfectly competent to manage the bank branch.

   Synonyms: proficient, capable, fit

2. adequate but not exceptional.
3. Law. (of a witness, a party to a contract, etc.) having legal competence, as by meeting certain minimum requirements of age, soundness of mind, or the like.
4. Geology. (of a bed or stratum) able to undergo folding without flowage or change in thickness.

competent

/ ˈkɒmpɪtənt /

adjective

1. having sufficient skill, knowledge, etc; capable
2. suitable or sufficient for the purpose

   a competent answer

3. law (of a witness) having legal capacity; qualified to testify, etc
4. postpositivefoll byto belonging as a right; appropriate

Derived Forms

• ˈcompetently, adverb
• ˈcompetentness, noun

Other Words From

• com·pe·tent·ly adverb
• non·com·pe·tent adjective
• ul·tra·com·pe·tent adjective
• un·com·pe·tent adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of competent¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin competent- (stem of competēns, present participle of competere “to meet, agree”); compete, -ent

Word History and Origins

Origin of competent¹

C14: from Latin competēns, from competere to be competent; see compete

Synonym Study

See able.

Example Sentences

"It's about surrounding my father with people who are competent and loyal. They will deliver on his promises," he said.

From BBC

Santos said Trump plans to "have a Cabinet with competent people."

From Salon

"He is not competent by training, management skills, temperament or trust to have this job. He's just absolutely the wrong guy for it," Benjamin said.

From BBC

He told the BBC: "I don't think I committed fraud. I didn't want any of this to happen. I was certainly not nearly as competent as I thought I was."

From BBC

“They also may feel like their child may not be competent enough for the program, which creates a situation where our kids aren’t even given the chance to compete to get into the program.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• adequate
• capable
• decent
• efficient
• proficient
• qualified
• skilled