Wiktionary

competent

See also: compétent and compètent

English

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Etymology

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From Middle English competent, conpetent, from Old French competent (modern French compétent), from Latin competens, competentem, present participle of competō (“coincide, be equal to, be capable of”). Compare Dutch competent (“competent”), German kompetent (“competent”), Danish kompetent (“competent”).

Pronunciation

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  • Audio (US):(file)
  • IPA(key): /ˈkɒmpətənt/

Adjective

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competent (comparative more competent, superlative most competent)

  1. Having sufficient skill, knowledge, ability, or qualifications.
    He is a competent skier and an expert snowboarder.
    • 1922, James Joyce, Ulysses:
      I believe in that myself because it has been explained by competent men as the convolutions of the grey matter.
    • 1922, James Joyce, Ulysses:
      That as a competent keyless citizen he had proceeded energetically from the unknown to the known through the incertitude of the void.
  2. (law) Having jurisdiction or authority over a particular issue or question.
    For any disagreements arising from this contract, the competent court shall be the Springfield Circuit Court.
    judicial authority having competent jurisdiction
  3. Adequate for the purpose.
    • 1662, Henry More, An Antidote Against Atheism, Book II, A Collection of Several Philosophical Writings of Dr. Henry More, p. 67:
      For if they [birds] had been Viviparous, the burthen of their womb, if they had brought forth any competent number at a time, had been ſo big and heavy, that their wings would have failed them, and ſo every body would have had the wit to catch the Old one.
  4. (biology, medicine, of an organ, tissue, or system) Functionally in order; functioning adequately.
    a competent sphincter;   a competent cervix;   a competent immune system
  5. (biology, of a cell wall) Permeable to foreign DNA.
  6. (geology) Resistant to deformation or flow.

Antonyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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Catalan

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Latin competentem.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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competent m or f (masculine and feminine plural competents)

  1. competent (having sufficient skill)
    Antonym: incompetent
  2. (law) competent (having jurisdiction or authority)

Derived terms

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Further reading

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Dutch

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Etymology

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From Middle Dutch competent, from Middle French competent, from Latin competēns.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˌkɔm.pəˈtɛnt/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: com‧pe‧tent
  • Rhymes: -ɛnt

Adjective

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competent (comparative competenter, superlative competentst)

  1. competent

Declension

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Declension of competent
uninflected competent
inflected competente
comparative competenter
positive comparative superlative
predicative/adverbial competent competenter het competentst
het competentste
indefinite m./f. sing. competente competentere competentste
n. sing. competent competenter competentste
plural competente competentere competentste
definite competente competentere competentste
partitive competents competenters —

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • → Indonesian: kompeten

Latin

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Verb

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competent

  1. third-person plural future active indicative of competō

Occitan

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Etymology

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From Latin competēns.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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competent m (feminine singular competenta, masculine plural competents, feminine plural competentas)

  1. competent

Derived terms

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Romanian

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Etymology

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Borrowed from French compétent, Latin competens.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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competent m or n (feminine singular competentă, masculine plural competenți, feminine and neuter plural competente)

  1. competent

Declension

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singular plural
masculine neuter feminine masculine neuter feminine
nominative-
accusative 		indefinite competent competentă competenți competente
definite competentul competenta competenții competentele
genitive-
dative 		indefinite competent competente competenți competente
definite competentului competentei competenților competentelor
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