Proficient

//pɹəˈfɪʃ.ənt// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An expert.

    "The colonel now addressed me, […] adding, "I hope we shall send you to your regiment up the country quite a proficient, and calculated to reflect credit on your instructors in the Zubberdust Bullumteers.""

Adjective
  1. 1
    Good at something; skilled; fluent; practiced, especially in relation to a task or skill.

    "He was a proficient writer with an interest in human nature."

Adjective
  1. 1
    having or showing knowledge and skill and aptitude wordnet
  2. 2
    of or relating to technique or proficiency in a practical skill wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
skilledexpertableaccomplishedaceadapted

Example

More examples

"Proficient in English, he is looked on as a good teacher."

Etymology

From Latin proficiens, present participle of proficere (“to go forward, advance, make progress, succeed, be profitable or useful”), from pro (“forth, forward”) + facere (“to make, do”); see fact.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.