scholarship

noun

schol·​ar·​ship ˈskä-lər-ˌship 

1

: a grant-in-aid to a student (as by a college or foundation)

2

: the character, qualities, activity, or attainments of a scholar : learning

3

: a fund of knowledge and learning

drawing on the scholarship of the ancients

Synonyms of scholarship

• literacy
• knowledge
• education
• learning

Choose the Right Synonym for scholarship

knowledge, learning, erudition, scholarship mean what is or can be known by an individual or by humankind.

knowledge applies to facts or ideas acquired by study, investigation, observation, or experience.

rich in the knowledge of human nature

learning applies to knowledge acquired especially through formal, often advanced, schooling.

a book that demonstrates vast learning

erudition strongly implies the acquiring of profound, recondite, or bookish learning.

an erudition unusual even in a scholar

scholarship implies the possession of learning characteristic of the advanced scholar in a specialized field of study or investigation.

a work of first-rate literary scholarship

Examples of scholarship in a Sentence

She got a scholarship to Yale University.

The organization is offering five $5,000 scholarships.

The essay is a work of serious scholarship.

The book is about his life and scholarship.

Recent Examples on the Web

Before their divorce, Kerri Ann and Mike donated $50,000 to San Diego State University to create a scholarship fund in her name, according to The LA Times. —Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 5 Dec. 2025

After signing in the morning at school, Palmer and teammate Honor Fa’alave-Johnson, a junior who has 40 scholarship offers, went to Oceanside to support long-time friend EZ Tokio, an edge rusher who signed with Washington. —John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Dec. 2025

Discovering nonfiction that reads like a story but keeps the scholarship front and center is the great white whale hunt for bookish adventurers. —Brianne Kane, Scientific American, 4 Dec. 2025

From supporting families displaced by wildfires to funding scholarships and legal aid, Fuerza Regida has consistently turned their success into action for the communities that raised them. —Thania Garcia, Variety, 4 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1536, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing scholarship

• football scholarship
• full scholarship

Rhymes for scholarship

• authorship
• battleship
• censorship
• chairmanship
• chieftainship
• comradeship
• consulship
• craftsmanship
• dealership
• draftsmanship
• fellowship
• fingertip

Kids Definition

scholarship

noun

schol·​ar·​ship ˈskäl-ər-ˌship 

1

: money given (as by a college) to a student to help pay for further education

2

: the character, qualities, or achievements of a scholar