alma mater

noun

al·​ma ma·​ter ˌal-mə-ˈmä-tər 

1

: a school, college, or university which one has attended or from which one has graduated

went to a class reunion at his alma mater

2

: the song or hymn of a school, college, or university

"Hey, Harvard boy, sing your alma mater!" shouted an obnoxious producer.

—Phil Kloer

Examples of alma mater in a Sentence

I visited my old alma mater last week.

Recent Examples on the Web

His alma mater, Stoneman Douglas, was for kids with big-league dreams — kids like Luzardo, Anthony, Coby Mayo and Anthony Rizzo — who coupled those dreams with big-league frames. — Spencer Nusbaum, New York Times, 10 July 2026

After serving as an assistant coach at her alma mater and George Washington, Reeve became head coach at Indiana State, going 63-72 over five seasons with winning records in each of the last two. — Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026

Tap into your college’s alumni network, whether through an internal portal for graduates or by filtering on the LinkedIn page for your alma mater. — Sarah Jackson, CNBC, 8 July 2026

Klein was offensive coordinator at Texas A&M the season prior, but returned to his alma mater. — Cal Phillips july 8, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 8 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin, fostering mother

First Known Use

1650, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for alma mater

• imprimatur
• underwater
• auteur
• blotter
• cotter
• daughter
• hotter
• otter
• plotter
• rotter
• slaughter
• spotter

Kids Definition

alma mater

noun

al·​ma ma·​ter ˌal-mə-ˈmät-ər 

: a school, college, or university that one has attended

Etymology

Latin, literally "fostering mother," from almus "nourishing" (from alire "to nourish") and mater "mother" — related to alimentary, maternal