experience

[ik-speer-ee-uhns]

noun

1. a particular instance of personally encountering or undergoing something.

   My encounter with the bear in the woods was a frightening experience.

2. the process or fact of personally observing, encountering, or undergoing something.

   business experience.

3. the observing, encountering, or undergoing of things generally as they occur in the course of time.

   to learn from experience; the range of human experience.

4. knowledge or practical wisdom gained from what one has observed, encountered, or undergone.

   a man of experience.

5. Philosophy.,  the totality of the cognitions given by perception; all that is perceived, understood, and remembered.

verb (used with object)

experienced, experiencing 

1. to have experience of; meet with; undergo; feel.

   to experience nausea.

   Synonyms: suffer, endure, brook, bear

2. to learn by experience.

experience

/ ɪkˈspɪərɪəns /

noun

1. direct personal participation or observation; actual knowledge or contact

   experience of prison life

2. a particular incident, feeling, etc, that a person has undergone

   an experience to remember

3. accumulated knowledge, esp of practical matters

   a man of experience

4. 1. the totality of characteristics, both past and present, that make up the particular quality of a person, place, or people

   2. the impact made on an individual by the culture of a people, nation, etc

      the American experience

5. philosophy

   1. the content of a perception regarded as independent of whether the apparent object actually exists Compare sense datum

   2. the faculty by which a person acquires knowledge of contingent facts about the world, as contrasted with reason

   3. the totality of a person's perceptions, feelings, and memories

verb

1. to participate in or undergo

2. to be emotionally or aesthetically moved by; feel

   to experience beauty

Other Word Forms

• experienceable adjective
• experienceless adjective
• postexperience adjective
• preexperience noun
• reexperience verb

Word History and Origins

Origin of experience¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, Middle French, from Latin experientia, equivalent to experient- (stem of experiēns, past participle of experīrī “to try, test”; ex- ¹, peril ) + -ia noun suffix; -ence

Word History and Origins

Origin of experience¹

C14: from Latin experientia, from experīrī to prove; related to Latin perīculum _peril

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. experience religion, to undergo a spiritual conversion by which one gains or regains faith in God.

Example Sentences

“We are heartbroken and still processing this loss. Dan truly believed in sharing his experiences and educating people on the paranormal,” the society said on Facebook.

From Los Angeles Times

Montgomery was highly experienced in wilderness survival and a former scoutmaster himself.

From Los Angeles Times

Without Andy, a so-called “synthetic person,” we get the sense that Rain wouldn’t experience much humane treatment at all.

From Salon

“It’s so crazy to have that experience where I’m now that person and there might be a kid somewhere who’s like ‘Oh, my God, I see myself you.’

From Los Angeles Times

The fixes to the Sepulveda Pass, “a route that experiences heavy, continuous traffic while serving crucial commuter and commercial needs,” will improve safety for drivers, Caltrans said.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• acquaintance 
• background 
• exposure 
• familiarity 
• intimacy 
• involvement 
• know-how 
• knowledge 
• participation 
• practice 
• understanding 

When To Use

What is another way to say experience?

To experience something is to meet with it or feel it firsthand. How is experience different from undergo? Find out on Thesaurus.com.