School / B2

uh-TEND-uh-ns/əˈtendəns/

Attendance is being present, or how many people came: attendance at the lecture, poor attendance. Presence is a close cousin; turnout is common for events and votes. Attend is the verb, with collocations such as attendance record and compulsory attendance. The opposite idea is absence; in speech, who turned up or who was there is more natural.

Meaning

The fact of being present, or the number of people present.

Examples

• “Attendance at the lecture was high.”
• “Attendance has improved since the reminder emails.”
• “The play had strong attendance on Saturday night.”

Good to know

attendance at + event. Verb: attend. Close: turnout (events). Everyday: who was there. Opposite: absence.

Near in meaning

presence

Topics

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