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observance

   Also found in: Legal, Financial, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.06 sec.
ob·ser·vance  (b-zûrvns)
n.
1. The act or practice of observing or complying with a law, custom, command, or rule.
2. The act or custom of keeping or celebrating a holiday or other ritual occasion.
3. A customary rite or ceremony.
4. The act of watching; observation: "Consider how much intellect was needed in the architect, and how much observance of nature" (John Ruskin).
5. Roman Catholic Church The rule governing a religious order.

observance [əbˈzɜːvəns]
n
1. recognition of or compliance with a law, custom, practice, etc.
2. the act of such recognition
3. a ritual, ceremony, or practice, esp of a religion
4. observation or attention
5. (Christianity / Roman Catholic Church) the degree of strictness of a religious order or community in following its rule
6. Archaic respectful or deferential attention

Observance of hermits: a company of hermits; a religious order, as the Franciscans, who observe and follow a rule—Bk. of St. Albans, 1486.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.observance - the act of observing; taking a patient look
looking, looking at, look - the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually; "he went out to have a look"; "his look was fixed on her eyes"; "he gave it a good looking at"; "his camera does his looking for him"
monitoring - the act of observing something (and sometimes keeping a record of it); "the monitoring of enemy communications plays an important role in war times"
sighting - the act of observing; "several sightings of enemy troops were reported"
stargazing - observation of the stars
2.observanceobservance - a formal event performed on a special occasion; "a ceremony commemorating Pearl Harbor"
social function, social occasion, occasion, affair, function - a vaguely specified social event; "the party was quite an affair"; "an occasion arranged to honor the president"; "a seemingly endless round of social functions"
circumstance - formal ceremony about important occasions; "pomp and circumstance"
funeral - a ceremony at which a dead person is buried or cremated; "hundreds of people attended his funeral"
hymeneals, nuptials, wedding, wedding ceremony - the social event at which the ceremony of marriage is performed
pageantry, pageant - a rich and spectacular ceremony
dedication - a ceremony in which something (as a building) is dedicated to some goal or purpose
opening - a ceremony accompanying the start of some enterprise
commemoration, memorialisation, memorialization - a ceremony to honor the memory of someone or something
military ceremony - a formal ceremony performed by military personnel
induction, initiation, installation - a formal entry into an organization or position or office; "his initiation into the club"; "he was ordered to report for induction into the army"; "he gave a speech as part of his installation into the hall of fame"
exercise - (usually plural) a ceremony that involves processions and speeches; "academic exercises"
fire walking - the ceremony of walking barefoot over hot stones or a bed of embers
formalities, formality - a requirement of etiquette or custom; "a mere formality"
Maundy - a public ceremony on Maundy Thursday when the monarch distributes Maundy money
potlatch - a ceremonial feast held by some Indians of the northwestern coast of North America (as in celebrating a marriage or a new accession) in which the host gives gifts to tribesmen and others to display his superior wealth (sometimes, formerly, to his own impoverishment)
3.observance - the act of noticing or paying attention; "he escaped the notice of the police"
attending, attention - the process whereby a person concentrates on some features of the environment to the (relative) exclusion of others
mind - attention; "don't pay him any mind"
remark - explicit notice; "it passed without remark"
4.observanceobservance - conformity with law or custom or practice etc.
abidance, compliance, conformity, conformation - acting according to certain accepted standards; "their financial statements are in conformity with generally accepted accounting practices"
punctilio - strict observance of formalities
nonobservance - a lack of conformity with law or custom or practice etc.

observance
noun
1. carrying out of, attention to, performance of, respect for, notice of, honouring of, observation of, compliance with, adherence to, fulfilment of, discharge of, obedience to, keeping of, heeding of, conformity to Councils should ensure strict observance of laws.
carrying out of neglect of, disregard for, omission of, evasion of, inattention to, heedlessness of, nonobservance of
2. ceremony, rite, procedure, service, form, act, practice, tradition, celebration, custom, ritual, formality, ceremonial, ordinance, liturgy Numerous religious observances set the rhythm of the day.
Translations
observance [əbˈzɜːvəns] N
1. [of rule etc] → observancia f (of de) → cumplimiento m (of de) [of customs, rites etc] → práctica f
2. (= rite etc) → práctica f; (= custom) → costumbre f
religious observancesprácticas fpl religiosas
observance [əbˈzɜːrvəns] n
[law, custom] → observation f
strict observance of the law → la stricte observation de la loi
[religion] → observance f
religious observances → observances religieuses
observance
n
(of law)Befolgung f, → Beachtung f, → Beachten nt
(Eccl) (= keeping: of rites etc) → Einhalten nt, → Einhaltung f, → Beachten nt; (= celebration)Kirchenfest nt; (in a convent etc) → (Ordens)regel f, → Observanz f; observance of the SabbathEinhaltung fdes Sabbats or (non--Jewish) → des Sonntagsgebots; religious observancesreligiöse or (Christian also) → kirchliche Feste
observance [əbˈzɜːvns] nosservanza
religious observances → pratiche fpl religiose
observance [əbˈzɜːvns] nosservanza
religious observances → pratiche fpl religiose


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? Mentioned in ? References in classic literature
 
Therefore a wise lord cannot, nor ought he to, keep faith when such observance may be turned against him, and when the reasons that caused him to pledge it exist no longer.
Compacts of this kind exist among all civilized nations, subject to the usual vicissitudes of peace and war, of observance and non-observance, as the interests or passions of the contracting powers dictate.
I was in the mean time printing the material of Venetian Life and the Italian Journeys in a Boston newspaper after its rejection by the magazines; and my literary life, almost without my willing it, had taken the course of critical observance of books and men in their actuality.
 
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