1. The quality of being competent or capable of performing an allotted function. 2. The normal tight closure of a cardiac valve. 3. The ability of a group of embryonic cells to respond to an inducer. 4. The ability of a (bacterial) cell to take up free DNA, which may lead to transformation. 5. In psychiatry, the mental ability to distinguish right from wrong and to manage one's own affairs, or to assist one's counsel in a legal proceeding. 6. The state of reactivity of a cell, tissue, or organism that allows it to respond to certain stimuli. [Fr. c., fr. L.L. competentia, congruity]
- cardiac c. ability of the ventricles to pump the blood returning to the atria, so that atrial pressure does not rise abnormally.
* * *
com·pe·tence 'käm-pət-ən(t)s n the quality or state of being functionally adequate <drugs that improve the \competence of a failing heart>: as
a) the properties of an embryonic field that enable it to respond in a characteristic manner to an organizer
b) readiness of bacteria to undergo genetic transformation
* * *
com·pe·tence (komґpə-təns) [L. competens sufficient] 1. the ability of an organ or part to perform adequately any function required of it. 2. in embryology, the ability of embryonic cells to differentiate into cell types determined by inductors.Medical dictionary. 2011.