college

noun

col·​lege ˈkä-lij How to pronounce college (audio)
often attributive
1
: a body of clergy living together and supported by a foundation
2
: a building used for an educational or religious purpose
3
a
: a self-governing constituent body of a university offering living quarters and sometimes instruction but not granting degrees
Balliol and Magdalen Colleges at Oxford

called also residential college

b
: a preparatory or high school
c
: an independent institution of higher learning offering a course of general studies leading to a bachelor's degree
a liberal arts college
also : a university division offering this
d
: a part of a university offering a specialized group of courses
the university's college of pharmacy
e
: an institution offering instruction usually in a professional, vocational, or technical field
business college
an embalming college
4
: company, group
specifically : an organized body of persons engaged in a common pursuit or having common interests or duties
a college of cardinals serving as papal councillors and electors
5
a
: a group of persons considered by law to be a unit
b
: a body of electors compare electoral college
6
: the faculty, students, or administration of a college
The college was at the football game in force.

Examples of college in a Sentence

She teaches art at a local college. He graduated from one of the country's best colleges. She attended a business college. He attended college for several years, but didn't graduate. She dropped out of college. I went to Mount Holyoke College. When I was a junior in college, I spent a semester in Spain. the Edinburgh College of Art the London College of Fashion She is attending fashion college.
Recent Examples on the Web The industry says many kids are pushed by parents and educators, who don’t view construction as a good career option, to go to college. Tami Luhby, CNN, 21 Mar. 2024 March Madness — the National Collegiate Athletics Association's (NCAA) college basketball tournament — kicked off this week, and Americans are betting big money on which school will be crowned champions for 2024. Khristopher J. Brooks, CBS News, 21 Mar. 2024 Jacksonville ends the season with a scoring average of 100.4 points per game, the first team to average more than 100 points in a college basketball season. 1984 — Glenn Anderson of Edmonton scores his 50th goal of the season and helps the Oilers beat the Hartford Whalers 5-3. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024 Sixty years after its flagship Berkeley campus became the epicenter of a student free-speech movement, the University of California is once again at the center of debate over the cherished freedom of expression amid disputes at colleges around the country over the Israel-Hamas war. John Woolfolk, The Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2024 As a social source recently told PEOPLE, much of Barron's life of late has been focused on looking at colleges for his next chapter — and his mother is very involved in the process. Virginia Chamlee, Peoplemag, 20 Mar. 2024 This has intensified recruiting drives for aerospace majors at colleges like the Georgia Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Michigan. Aashna Shah, Fortune, 20 Mar. 2024 She was born and raised in Chicago, and went to college at Harvard, then worked as a consultant. E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, 20 Mar. 2024 Research suggests these borrowers often approach retirement as poor as their counterparts who didn’t attend college. USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'college.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin collegium society, from collega colleague — more at colleague

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of college was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near college

Cite this Entry

“College.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/college. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

college

noun
col·​lege ˈkäl-ij How to pronounce college (audio)
1
: a building used for an educational or religious purpose
2
a
: a self-governing body of a university offering living quarters and instruction but not granting degrees
Balliol College at Oxford
b
: a school higher than a high school
c
: an independent institution offering a course of general studies leading to a bachelor's degree
also : a university division offering this
3
: an organized body of persons having common interests or duties
the college of cardinals

More from Merriam-Webster on college

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