school

1 of 4

noun (1)

1
: an organization that provides instruction: such as
a
: an institution for the teaching of children
c(1)
: a group of scholars and teachers pursuing knowledge together that with similar groups constituted a medieval university
(2)
: one of the four faculties of a medieval university
(3)
: an institution for specialized higher education often associated with a university
the school of engineering
d
: an establishment offering specialized instruction
a secretarial school
driving schools
2
a(1)
: the process of teaching or learning especially at a school
(2)
: attendance at a school
(3)
: a session of a school
b
: a school building
c
: the students attending a school
also : its teachers and students
3
: a source of knowledge
experience was his school
4
a
: a group of persons who hold a common doctrine or follow the same teacher (as in philosophy, theology, or medicine)
the Aristotelian school
also : the doctrine or practice of such a group
b
: a group of artists under a common influence
c
: a group of persons of similar opinions or behavior
also : the shared opinions or behavior of such a group
other schools of thought
5
: the regulations governing military drill of individuals or units
also : the exercises carried out
the school of the soldier

school

2 of 4

verb (1)

schooled; schooling; schools

transitive verb

1
a
: to teach or drill in a specific knowledge or skill
well schooled in languages
b
: to discipline or habituate to something
school oneself in patience
2
: to educate in an institution of learning
The child was schooled at great cost to her family.

school

3 of 4

noun (2)

: a large number of fish or aquatic animals of one kind swimming together

school

4 of 4

verb (2)

schooled; schooling; schools

intransitive verb

: to swim or feed in a school
bluefish are schooling
Choose the Right Synonym for school

teach, instruct, educate, train, discipline, school mean to cause to acquire knowledge or skill.

teach applies to any manner of imparting information or skill so that others may learn.

taught us a lot about our planet

instruct suggests methodical or formal teaching.

instructs raw recruits in military drill

educate implies development of the mind.

more things than formal schooling serve to educate a person

train stresses instruction and drill with a specific end in view.

trained foreign pilots to operate the new aircraft

discipline implies training in habits of order and precision.

a disciplined mind

school implies training or disciplining especially in what is hard to master.

schooled the horse in five gaits

Examples of school in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The new archbishop would become Milwaukee's 12th prelate, overseeing a 10-county archdiocese in southeast Wisconsin with 187 parishes and 101 schools. Sophie Carson, Journal Sentinel, 12 Mar. 2024 Readers across the globe borrowed 662 million e-books, audiobooks and digital magazines last year, up 19% since 2022, according to data provided by OverDrive, the main distributor of digital content for libraries and schools. Susan Haigh, Fortune, 12 Mar. 2024 Kern County has been hit with another courtroom setback in its quest to fast-track oil and gas drilling, including near homes and schools, in the San Joaquin Valley. Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 12 Mar. 2024 And the dean of students, who was in that meeting as well, concluded that the boy did not present a threat to the school. Gina Kaufman, Detroit Free Press, 12 Mar. 2024 Visions also entail past or imagined journeys — whether long car trips or short walks to school. Phoebe Zerwick, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2024 In the first weeks of school in the fall, central Indiana County saw more than half a dozen instances of students bringing weapons to school. Caroline Beck, The Indianapolis Star, 12 Mar. 2024 Board member: New policy would bring more students to schools During the March 6 meeting, governing board member Madicyn Reid said opening Fountain Hills Unified's sports programs to school voucher recipients would allow the district to collect money and get more kids through their doors. The Arizona Republic, 12 Mar. 2024 The film follows a teen named Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa) at a boarding school in New England in 1970 who is left to spend the holiday season at the school with unpopular teacher Paul Hunham (Giamatti) and the school's cook, Mary (Randolph), who is grieving her son's death in the Vietnam War. Brendan Le, Peoplemag, 11 Mar. 2024
Verb
Her ex-fiancé Joel Schiffman takes the girls to school several days a week, and Kotb strives to pick them up every day as work allows. Charlotte Triggs, Peoplemag, 6 Mar. 2024 This past season, Sorensen was often seen at practice schooling up the defensive backs, specifically the nickel backs. Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 2 Mar. 2024 Born in North Carolina, raised in Virginia, schooled in Ohio, and after traveling to England, Nixon first started playing music in Denver in a punk band known as Zebra 123. Craig Rosen, Variety, 8 Feb. 2024 Will Byington via Variety Born in North Carolina, raised in Virginia, schooled in Ohio, and after traveling to England, Nixon first started playing music in Denver in a punk band known as Zebra 123. Variety, NBC News, 8 Feb. 2024 Saweetie’s status as a global artist with two Grammy nominations and five songs that have made the Hot 100 charts has schooled her on the formulaic yet admittedly effective approach the music industry takes. Lakin Imani Starling, Allure, 29 Feb. 2024 To help President Bashar al-Assad of Syria beat back rebel forces and Islamic State terrorists, Iran at the time began recruiting thousands of Afghan refugees to fight, offering $500 a month, schooling for their children, and Iranian residency. Farnaz Fassihi, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2024 Six players born, raised or schooled in the state played in MLS games last season, according to wisconsinsoccercentral.com: Ethan Finlay, a midfielder who played for Marshfield High School, completed his 12th season, the last two with Austin FC, and has started 214 of his 313 games. Dave Kallmann, Journal Sentinel, 17 Jan. 2024 Style du Monde’s street style photos schooled us in the art of layering a school uniform-style skirt over track pants, another way to keep warm, if not fuzzy. Irene Kim, Vogue, 6 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'school.' 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

Noun (1)

Middle English scole, from Old English scōl, from Latin schola, from Greek scholē leisure, discussion, lecture, school; perhaps akin to Greek echein to hold — more at scheme entry 1

Noun (2)

Middle English scole, from Middle Dutch schole; akin to Old English scolu multitude and probably to Old English scylian to separate — more at skill entry 1

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1597, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of school was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near school

Cite this Entry

“School.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/school. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

school

1 of 3 noun
1
a
: a place or establishment for teaching and learning
public schools
a music school
b
: a faculty or division within an institution for higher education devoted to teaching, study, and research in a particular area of knowledge : college
school of law
graduate school
2
a
: a session of school
missed school yesterday
c
: the students or students and teachers of a school
the whole school was at the assembly
3
: a group of persons having the same opinions and beliefs or accepting the same methods or leaders
also : the shared opinions, beliefs, or methods of such a group

school

2 of 3 verb
1
: to teach or drill in a specific skill or area of knowledge
well schooled in languages
2
: to discipline or make used to something
school oneself in patience

school

3 of 3 noun
: a large number of water-dwelling animals of one kind (as fish) swimming together
Etymology

Noun

Old English scōl "a place for learning," from Latin schola (same meaning), from Greek scholē "leisure, discussion, lecture, school"

Word Origin
The English word school comes from the Greek scholē. The original meaning of scholē was "leisure." To the Greeks it seemed natural that one's leisure should be spent learning and thinking. Scholē therefore came to mean not only "leisure" but also "a place for learning." Many Greeks were later employed by the Romans as teachers, and the Romans borrowed the Greek word as schola. The Latin word schola in time came into Old English as scōl.

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