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discipline

noun · verb

Simple meaning

A controlled behaviour.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

disuhpluhn

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈdɪsəplən

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. A controlled behaviour; self-control.

  2. An enforced compliance or control.

  3. A specific branch of knowledge, learning, or practice.

    “In what discipline is his doctorate?”

  4. A set of rules regulating behaviour.

  5. A systematic method of obtaining obedience.

  6. A state of order based on submission to authority.

verb

  1. transitive

    To train someone by instruction and practice.

  2. Develop (a child's or animal's) behavior by instruction and practice; especially to teach self-control

  3. transitive

    To teach someone to obey authority.

  4. Punish in order to gain control or enforce obedience

    “The teacher disciplined the pupils rather frequently.”

  5. transitive

    To impose order on someone.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A2 · Elementary (estimated)
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
General English

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How It’s Used

The word’s distinct uses, one example each.

  • Specificnoun

    “In what discipline is his doctorate?”

  • Punishverb

    “The teacher disciplined the pupils rather frequently.”

More ways to use discipline

  • “In what discipline is his doctorate?”noun
  • “He quickly learned the discipline of prison routine.”noun
  • “He insisted on discipline among the troops.”noun

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

military disciplineparty disciplineacademic disciplinestrict disciplinechurch disciplinemental disciplinenew disciplinemoral discipline

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • disciplinaryadjectiveDerived adjective

    Related to a branch of knowledge.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • humanistic disciplinenounCompound term

    Studies intended to provide general knowledge and intellectual skills (rather than occupational or professional skills).

  • scientific disciplinenounCompound term

    A particular branch of scientific knowledge.

  • self-disciplinenounCompound term

    The trait of practicing self discipline.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Antonyms

Sense: controlled behaviour

indiscipline

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.