Meaning & use
activities
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“activities” is a form of “activity”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
Things that people do for enjoyment, learning or interest, often in an organized way.
Grammar: Plural of activity: the camp offers many activities.
Patterns
- take part in activities
- organize activities
- activities for someone
The camp offers outdoor activities such as hiking and kayaking.
Children enjoy hands-on activities at the science museum.
She joined several after-school activities.
nounpluralformal
Actions or tasks carried out as part of work, a project or a process.
Grammar: Plural of activity: a company's main activities.
Patterns
- activities of something
- core activities
The company's main activities include farming and food processing.
Teachers planned classroom activities for the new unit.
The charity's activities are funded by donations.
nounplural
Actions that are illegal, suspicious or secret.
Grammar: Usually after an adjective: criminal activities.
Patterns
- criminal activities
- suspicious activities
Police are investigating suspicious activities near the bank.
The group was banned for illegal activities.
Neighbors reported unusual activities in the building at night.
Word forms
| singular | activity |
|---|
Common combinations
- outdoor activities
- We planned several outdoor activities for the weekend.
- extracurricular activities
- Her extracurricular activities included chess and drama.
- take part in activities
- Everyone took part in the group activities.
- criminal activities
- He was arrested for criminal activities.
- leisure activities
- Reading and cycling are his favorite leisure activities.
- organize activities
- The center organizes activities for older adults.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pastimes
- Pastimes are things done in free time for pleasure, while activities can also be organized or work-related.
- pursuits
- Pursuits is more formal and suggests things you follow with interest.
- tasks
- Tasks are jobs to be done, not usually for enjoyment.
- operations
- Operations describes how an organization runs, which is narrower than activities.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: activities or actions?
activities vs actions
Actions are single things done, whereas activities are organized or regular things people take part in.
Practice
The summer camp offers many ___ such as swimming, archery and painting.
Choose one answer.
Activities are organized things to do. Activists campaign for causes, activations are starting-up events and actives is not a normal noun here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “activities”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.