practice

*out of practice

performing poorly due to a lack of practice. (*Typically: be ~; get ~; go ~.) I used to be able to play the piano extremely well, but now I'm out of practice. The baseball players lost the game because they were out of practice.

See also: out

in practice 

1. in the actual doing of something; in reality. Our policy is to be very particular, but in practice we don't care that much. The instructions say not to set it too high. In practice I always set it as high as possible.

2. well-rehearsed; well-practiced; well-exercised. The swimmer was not in practice and almost drowned. I play the piano for a living, and I have to keep in practice.

make a practice of something and make something a practice

to turn something into a habitual activity. Jane makes a practice of planting daisies every summer. Her mother also made it a practice.

See also: make

practice (up)on someone or something

to train or drill on someone or something. (In preparation for the real thing. Upon is formal and less commonly used than on.) I do not want a dental student practicing upon me. I want to learn how to braid hair. Can I practice on you?

Practice makes perfect.

Prov. Cliché Doing something over and over again is the only way to learn to do it well. Jill: I'm not going to try to play the piano anymore. I always make so many mistakes. Jane: Don't give up. Practice makes perfect. Child: How come you're so good at peeling potatoes? Father: I did it a lot in the army, and practice makes perfect.

See also: make, perfect

Practice what you preach.

Prov. Cliché You yourself should do the things you advise other people to do. Dad always told us we should only watch an hour of television every day, but we all knew he didn't practice what he preached.

See also: preach

put something into practice

to make a suggested procedure the actual procedure. That is a good policy. I suggest you put it into practice immediately. I plan to put the new technique into practice as soon as I can.

See also: put

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Practice makes perfect.

something that you say which means if you do something many times you will learn to do it very well You can't expect to become a brilliant dancer overnight, but practice makes perfect.

See also: make, perfect

practise what you preach  (British & Australian) also practice what you preach (American)

to do what you advise other people to do I would have more respect for him if he practised what he preaches.

See also: preach

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in practice

1. actually In theory, the license fee is only $5 but, because other costs get added on, in practice it is more like $20. Opposite of: in theory

2. prepared It must have been six years since I took a girl out, and I wasn't in practice for the dating game.

Opposite of: out of practice

make a practice of doing something

to do something regularly or as a habit I don't make a practice of recommending restaurants, but this one is really special.

See also: make

out of practice

not prepared When I take time off from work, I get out of practice and have trouble getting up in the morning.

Opposite of: in practice

See also: out

practice what you preach

to behave the way you tell other people to behave Other countries need to see that we practice what we preach when it comes to human rights. I practice what I preach in that I exercise almost every day.

See also: preach