plural noun
The acts of putting plans, orders, or decisions into action.
The executions of the two evacuation plans went smoothly.
The executions of the orders were monitored by senior officers.
American English
How to pronounce executions
nounB2Common word
ehksuhkYOOshnz
/ˌɛk.səkˈju.ʃn̩z/
4 syllables · Stress the third syllable.
Form of execution
The acts of putting plans, orders, or decisions into action.
Practice out loudMeanings & examples
plural noun
The killings of people as legal punishments, usually ordered by a government.
The executions were carried out at dawn.
Witnesses to the executions were deeply affected.
Good to know
In American English, people are usually sentenced to death, not sentenced to execution.
plural noun
The ways skills, movements, pieces of music, or designs are performed, especially how well they are done.
The dancers' executions of the difficult moves were precise.
The two executions of the routine received high scores.
Good to know
Here, executions often means how well things are done, not just the acts themselves.
Useful expressions
the process of putting a plan into action
The execution of the plan began after the vote.
to legally kill a person as a punishment
The state carried out the execution before sunrise.
the time a computer program takes to run
The app’s execution time dropped after the update.