practised

Practised is the past tense and past participle of the British English verb practise. The verb means to perform an activity repeatedly to improve or maintain skill or proficiency, or to engage in a profession or activity as a regular practice. The noun form is practice. In American English, the corresponding past tense is practiced and the present participle is practicing; the base form for the verb remains practice.

As an adjective, practised can describe someone who has developed a high level of skill through repeated experience, often written with a hyphen as well-practised. The form is more common in British and other Commonwealth varieties; American style would typically use well-practiced.

Etymology traces practised to the noun practice, which comes from Latin practicare through Old French practique, with the modern verb form adopted in English by adding the -ise suffix in British usage. The American variant uses the -ize ending, resulting in practiced and practicing for the corresponding forms.

Usage notes include a clear regional distinction between British and American spellings. Practised signals a British provenance or a text following British conventions. In contexts aligned with American English, you would usually see practiced and practicing instead. When referring to the act itself or a field of professional activity, the noun practice remains common across dialects.

Examples:

- She practised the violin for an hour every day.

- He has practised law in London for years.

- He is a well-practised speaker.