I. ex ‧ pe ‧ ri ‧ ence 1 S1 W1 /ɪkˈspɪəriəns $ -ˈspɪr-/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: verb : ↑ experience ; noun : ↑ experience ≠ ↑ inexperience ; adjective : ↑ experienced ≠ ↑ inexperienced ]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: French ; Origin: Latin experientia 'act of trying' , from experiri 'to try out' ]
1 . KNOWLEDGE/SKILL [uncountable] knowledge or skill that you gain from doing a job or activity, or the process of doing this
experience of/in/with
You’ve got a lot of experience of lecturing.
my experience in many areas of the music business
He had no previous experience of managing a farm.
The advice in the booklet reflects the practical experience we have gained (=experience gained by actually doing something, rather than knowledge from books etc) .
I had some experience in fashion design.
She was turned down on the grounds of lack of experience.
I have first-hand experience (=experience gained by doing something myself) of running a school.
gain/get experience
The programme enables pupils to gain some experience of the world of work.
2 . KNOWLEDGE OF LIFE [uncountable] knowledge that you gain about life and the world by being in different situations and meeting different people, or the process of gaining this
in sb’s experience
In his experience, women did not like getting their feet wet and muddy.
know/learn/speak from experience
Being a parent isn’t easy, as I know from experience.
All animals appear to have some capacity to learn from experience.
I speak from bitter experience (=having learnt something because something unpleasant happened) .
personal/previous/past experience
From personal experience, she knew and understood the problems of alcohol addiction.
experience shows/suggests that
Beth’s experience suggests that people don’t really change deep down.
3 . SOMETHING THAT HAPPENS [countable] something that happens to you or something you do, especially when this has an effect on what you feel or think:
childhood experiences
experience of/with
This was my first experience of living with other people.
experience for
Failing an exam was a new experience for me.
I had a similar experience last year.
The two children in this story have been through a lot of bad experiences.
Parachuting is quite an experience.
memorable/unforgettable experience
This romantic evening cruise is a memorable experience.
religious experience (=a situation in which you feel, hear, or see something that affects you strongly and makes you believe in God)
This kind of religious experience was a sign of God’s special favour.
4 . the black/female/Russian etc experience events or knowledge shared by the members of a particular society or group of people:
No writer expresses the black experience with such passion as Toni Morisson.
5 . work experience British English a system in which a student can work for a company in order to learn about a job, or the period during which a student does this:
Ella is about to do work experience with a clothing manufacturer.
on work experience
students on work experience
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 1)
■ verbs
▪ have experience
Applicants must have experience of working with children.
▪ get/gain experience
He suggested that I should gain some experience in a related industry like travel.
▪ lack experience (=not have enough experience)
Some students lack experience writing essays.
▪ broaden/widen your experience (=increase the amount of different experience you have)
After six years with the bank, he went to work in New York to broaden his experience.
■ adjectives
▪ considerable experience (=a lot of experience)
Margaret has considerable experience of hospital work.
▪ long experience (=experience gained over a long period of time)
New prison officers are partnered by officers with long experience of dealing with violent prisoners.
▪ useful/valuable experience (=useful experience)
That summer he got some valuable experience working in a tax office.
▪ invaluable experience (=extremely useful experience)
Playing in the under-21 squad gives these young players invaluable experience.
▪ relevant experience (=experience that directly relates to a job, subject, or problem)
Applicants need a degree and two years of relevant experience.
▪ past/previous experience
His only previous experience of broadcasting consisted of a job hosting a local radio station.
▪ practical experience (=experience gained from doing something, not from books or study)
The classes provide students with some practical experience of computers.
▪ first-hand experience (=experience gained by doing something yourself)
She has no first-hand experience of running a school.
■ phrases
▪ a wealth of experience (=a lot of useful experience)
Between them, the management team have a wealth of experience.
▪ lack of experience
My colleagues kept making comments about about my lack of experience.
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 2)
■ adjectives
▪ personal experience
He spoke from personal experience about the harmful effects of taking drugs.
▪ life experience (=experience that comes from life)
As an older parent, your life experience is one of your greatest assets.
▪ first-hand experience (=experience gained from doing something yourself)
As a journalist living in Iraq, he had first-hand experience of coping with terror on his doorstep.
▪ bitter experience (=experience that makes you feel disappointed or upset)
I knew from bitter experience how unreliable she could be.
▪ everyday experience (=experience of normal life)
Hunger is part of everyday experience for these children.
■ verbs
▪ know/learn from experience
Janet knew from experience that love doesn't always last.
▪ speak from experience
The miners spoke from experience about the dangers of their work.
▪ lack experience
Many men in their twenties lack experience and social skills.
▪ experience suggests/shows something
Experience suggests that children who commit crimes will continue to offend as adults.
■ phrases
▪ lack of experience
He was embarrassed about his lack of experience with women.
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 3)
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + experience
▪ a good/bad experience
On the whole, going to boarding school was a good experience for him.
|
I've had some bad experiences when I've been travelling on my own.
▪ positive/negative
The entire experience has been very positive.
|
Many people reported having negative experiences when dealing with their local council.
▪ enjoyable/pleasant
We want to make the experience as enjoyable as possible.
|
She recalled pleasant experiences from her past.
▪ memorable/unforgettable (=a good experience that you will remember for a long time)
Meeting the queen was a memorable experience.
▪ painful (=one that is very upsetting)
Her family supported her through the painful experience.
▪ traumatic/harrowing (=one that is shocking and upsetting, and affects you for a long time)
Having an operation can be a traumatic experience for a child.
▪ new
The club scene was a whole new experience for me.
▪ a formative experience (=one that has an important influence on the way someone develops)
The trip was probably the most formative experience of my life.
▪ childhood experiences
Our childhood experiences make us what we are as adults.
▪ a religious experience (=one that makes someone believe strongly in God)
As a young man he had a profound religious experience.
▪ an everyday/commonplace experience (=one that is typical of normal life)
The sound of gunfire is an everyday experience in the city.
II. experience 2 S2 W2 BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Word Family: verb : ↑ experience ; noun : ↑ experience ≠ ↑ inexperience ; adjective : ↑ experienced ≠ ↑ inexperienced ]
1 . if you experience a problem, event, or situation, it happens to you or affects you
experience problems/difficulties
Many old people will experience problems as the result of retirement.
Children need to experience things for themselves in order to learn from them.
2 . to feel a particular emotion, pain etc:
Many women experience feelings of nausea during pregnancy.