performance
Meaning
The act of performing a play, piece of music, or other entertainment before an audience.
How well or badly a person, machine, or organization does a particular job or activity.
The action or process of carrying out or accomplishing a task or function.
Structure
Usage
The orchestra gave a stunning performance of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.
The car's performance on wet roads was impressive.
Regular monitoring is essential for evaluating the performance of the new software.
Etymology
The word 'performance' has its roots in the Anglo-Norman 'parfourmer', meaning to carry out or complete. This verb was itself built from Latin elements: the intensive prefix 'per-' (meaning "thoroughly") and the verb 'formare' (meaning "to shape or form"). Thus, the original literal sense was "to form or carry through to completion". By the late 15th century, it had evolved into the noun 'performance', initially denoting the completion or execution of a commanded action. Over time, its application broadened from the mere act of carrying out a task to specifically denote the manner or quality of that execution, especially in the contexts of artistic presentation and functional efficiency, capturing both the process and the result of formative action.
Analysis
- per: Latin origin, meaning "through, completely". Acts as an intensive prefix. - form: Latin origin, from 'forma' meaning "shape, mold, pattern". Acts as the core root meaning "to shape, to execute". - ance: Latin origin, from '-antia', a suffix forming nouns of action or state.