seminar

noun

sem·​i·​nar ˈse-mə-ˌnär 

1

: a group of advanced students studying under a professor with each doing original research and all exchanging results through reports and discussions

2

a(1)

: a course of study pursued by a seminar

(2)

: an advanced or graduate course often featuring informality and discussion

b

: a scheduled meeting of a seminar or a room for such meetings

3

: a meeting for giving and discussing information

Synonyms of seminar

• symposium
• conference
• panel

Examples of seminar in a Sentence

a seminar on career planning

a seminar bringing together the world's leading epidemiologists

Recent Examples on the Web

This week offers you a mini growth spurt or glow up of sorts, culminating in a Venus-Uranus trine on August 11 that may delight you with an unexpectedly good time in a foreign land or philosophy seminar. — Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 July 2026

El Mayor hosted pool gatherings at the Bourbon Orleans, followed by a tequila-and-chocolate seminar with Barriere, whose palate Gonzalez described as remarkably similar to her own. — Noel Burgess, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026

Careers made and ruined, departments torn apart, writing programs turned into sensitivity seminars, political witch hunts, public opprobrium, ignorant media attacks, the whole ball of wax. — Emily Eakin, Harpers Magazine, 28 July 2026

Bitter irony abounds, as when Nora, who is Black, attends a workplace mental health seminar in which a white, male supervisor who once mistreated her pretends to care about employees’ trauma. — Judy Berman, Time, 27 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

German, from Latin seminarium nursery

First Known Use

1863, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for seminar

• abattoir
• alcazar
• autocar
• avatar
• belshazzar
• caviar
• caviare
• cinnabar
• commissar
• condylar
• deodar
• handlebar

Kids Definition

seminar

noun

sem·​i·​nar ˈsem-ə-ˌnär 

1

: a course of study followed by a group of advanced students

2

: a meeting of a seminar or a room for such meetings

3

: a meeting for giving and discussing information

a sales seminar