Meaning & use
exercise
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Meanings
noununcountable
Physical activity that you do to stay healthy, strong or fit.
Grammar: Uncountable: do some exercise, not an exercise, in this sense.
Patterns
- get exercise
- do exercise
Regular exercise helps you sleep better.
Walking the dog gives me a bit of exercise every morning.
The doctor told him to take more exercise.
nouncountable
A task or set of tasks designed to practice a skill.
Grammar: Countable: an exercise, many exercises; often used with grammar, listening or breathing.
Patterns
- an exercise in something
- do an exercise
The teacher gave us a grammar exercise for homework.
Try this breathing exercise when you feel anxious.
Each unit ends with a listening exercise.
nouncountablemilitary
An organized practice or drill, especially by soldiers or rescue teams.
Grammar: Countable; often found in military exercises or a fire exercise.
Patterns
- a military exercise
- an exercise in something
The navy held a joint exercise with allied ships.
The school held a fire exercise last Tuesday.
Rescue teams took part in a flood exercise.
verbintransitive
To do physical activity to improve your health or fitness.
Grammar: No object: I exercise every day; with a person it is transitive: exercise the dog.
Patterns
- exercise regularly
- exercise your muscles
He exercises at the gym three times a week.
You should exercise before it gets too hot.
She exercises her dog twice a day.
verbtransitiveformal
To use a power, right or quality.
Grammar: Takes an object such as right, power or caution: exercise caution.
Patterns
- exercise a right
- exercise caution
Citizens should exercise their right to vote.
Please exercise caution on the icy road.
The director exercised her authority to cancel the meeting.
Word forms
| plural | exercises |
|---|---|
| third person singular | exercises |
| past tense | exercised |
| past participle | exercised |
| -ing form | exercising |
Common combinations
- regular exercise
- Regular exercise keeps your heart healthy.
- do exercise
- I try to do some exercise before breakfast.
- take exercise
- The nurse advised him to take more exercise.
- exercise caution
- Drivers should exercise caution in heavy fog.
- exercise a right
- The tenants exercised their right to appeal.
- breathing exercise
- A short breathing exercise helped her calm down.
Synonyms and how they differ
- workout
- Workout is a single session of exercise, usually at a gym, whereas exercise is the general activity.
- training
- Training suggests preparing for a sport or skill with a goal, rather than just staying healthy.
- drill
- Drill means repetitive practice, often in a strict group, and is more mechanical than exercise.
- use
- For the verb meaning 'use a power', use is plainer, while exercise is formal.
Opposites
Word family
- exerciser noun
- a person who does physical exercise
- exercised adjective
- worked up or worried, in the phrase 'exercised about'
- exercise bike noun
- a stationary bicycle for exercising indoors
Commonly confused: exercise or exorcise?
exercise vs exorcise
To exorcise is to drive out an evil spirit. It looks similar but has nothing to do with physical activity.
Practice
Which sentence uses exercise as an uncountable noun?
Choose one answer.
Uncountable exercise means physical activity and takes no article or plural. The other sentences use it as a countable task.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “exercise”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.