different between competency vs efficacy

English

Etymology

From French compétence.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?k?mp?t?nsi/

Noun

competency (countable and uncountable, plural competencies)

1. (obsolete) A sufficient supply (of).
   • 1612, John Smith, Proceedings of the English Colonie in Virginia, in Kupperman 1988, p. 178:

     the next day they returned unsuspected, leaving their confederates to follow, and in the interim, to convay them a competencie of all things they could […]

   • 1892, Ambrose Bierce, Tales of Soldiers and Civilians - A Holy Terror

     […] it would appear that before taking this precaution Mr. Bree must have had the thrift to remove a modest competency of the gold […]

2. (obsolete) A sustainable income.
   • 1915, W.S. Maugham, Of Human Bondage, chapter 116:

     He had heard people speak contemptuously of money: he wondered if they had ever tried to do without it. He knew that the lack made a man petty, mean, grasping; it distorted his character and caused him to view the world from a vulgar angle; when you had to consider every penny, money became of grotesque importance: you needed a competency to rate it at its proper value.

3. The ability to perform some task; competence.
   • 1796, Edmund Burke, Letters on a Regicide Peace

     The loan demonstrates, in regard to instrumental resources, the competency of this kingdom to the assertion of the common cause.
4. (law) Meeting specified qualifications to perform.
5. (linguistics) Implicit knowledge of a language’s structure.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:skill

Translations

English

Etymology

From Old French efficace, from Late Latin effic?cia (“efficacy”), from effic?x (“efficacious”); see efficacious.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??f.?.k?.si/

Noun

efficacy (usually uncountable, plural efficacies)

1. Ability to produce a desired effect under ideal testing conditions.
   • 2005, Flay et al. Standards of Evidence: Criteria for Efficacy, Effectiveness and Dissemination DOI: 10.1007/s11121-005-5553-y

     Efficacy refers to the beneficial effects of a program or policy under optimal conditions of delivery, whereas effectiveness refers to effects of a program or policy under more real-world conditions.

2. Degree of ability to produce a desired effect.
   • 1996, Moskovich, Patent application PCT/US1996/003658

     Toothbrush with improved efficacy

Synonyms

• efficacity

Related terms

Translations

Further reading

• efficacy in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• efficacy in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.