as in ability
the physical or mental power to do something
questioned his competence to finish the task without help
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of competence
In this landscape, organizations such as the CDC, which once stood as unimpeachable examples of government competence, have become victims of their own success, appearing to skeptics to be inert or irrelevant.
—
Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 9 Feb. 2026
In these environments, technical competence is table stakes.
—Grace Brown, Fortune, 5 Feb. 2026
Officials learn that survival depends less on competence than on fidelity.
—Alejandro Reyes, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2026
Learning to Engage McMillon has an almost professorial air that’s articulate, polite and exudes competence — but his skill set was honed by long years of experience.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for competence
Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 9 Feb. 2026
In these environments, technical competence is table stakes.
—Grace Brown, Fortune, 5 Feb. 2026
Officials learn that survival depends less on competence than on fidelity.
—Alejandro Reyes, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2026
Learning to Engage McMillon has an almost professorial air that’s articulate, polite and exudes competence — but his skill set was honed by long years of experience.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for competence
Recent Examples of Synonyms for competence
Noun
-
What sets Luckin apart has been its ability to build a robust pool of private user traffic through its smartphone ordering app, said Mingchao Xiao, founder of Zhimeng Trends Consulting.—
Evelyn Cheng,
CNBC,
8 Feb. 2026
-
The ability to make something out of nothing may seem uniquely human — a bedrock of creativity that’s led to new kinds of art, music and more.—
Adithi Ramakrishnan,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
To degrade what's left of Iran's nuclear program and missile-making capacity?—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Heirs had raised $750 million from the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in December to finance the expansion of its own oil producing facility to 100,000 barrels per day within five years, more than doubling the asset’s capacity when it was bought from Shell in 2021.—
Alexander Onukwue,
semafor.com,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Russia has seen high-profile technology projects fall short before, and without independent demonstrations, PJN-1’s true capabilities are unclear.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Takaichi has pledged to revise security and defense policies by December to bolster Japan's offensive military capabilities.—
MARI YAMAGUCHI,
Arkansas Online,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Let’s talk about our innovation competencies.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Sourcing Journal,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Groft’s attorneys in November expressed doubt as to his mental competency, but a judge deemed Groft competent after an evaluation.—
Grace Toohey,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Competence.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/competence. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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