academic

adjective

ac·​a·​dem·​ic ˌa-kə-ˈde-mik 

variants or less commonly academical

ˌa-kə-ˈde-mi-kəl 

1

a

: of, relating to, or associated with an academy or school especially of higher learning

the academic curriculum

academic courses

b

: of or relating to performance in courses of study

academic excellence

academic achievements

c

: very learned but inexperienced in practical matters

academic thinkers

d

: based on formal study especially at an institution of higher learning

her academic qualifications

2

: of or relating to literary or artistic rather than technical or professional studies

a region that has both academic and vocational high schools

3

a

: theoretical, speculative

a purely academic question

b

: having no practical or useful significance

4

: conforming to the traditions or rules of a school (as of literature or art) or an official academy : conventional

academic painting

Synonyms of academic

• educational
• scholarly

Examples of academic in a Sentence

She received awards for her academic achievements.

I spent my academic career at one school.

The board set tough academic standards for graduation.

He was offered a teaching job and decided to return to academic life.

His interest in sailing is purely academic. He's not a sailor himself.

He's not very academic, but he's good with his hands.

Recent Examples on the Web

Officials say this could force students to reassess program costs, time to completion and borrowing needs earlier in their academic planning. —Kennedy Cook, CBS News, 6 June 2026

Corporate and academic labs are buying humanoid robots for research. —Chan Ho-Him, Fortune, 6 June 2026

Barr rightly notes that current capital standards were already near the low end of what academic research identifies as optimal; cutting further tips the balance toward fragility, not strength. —Mayra Rodriguez Valladares, Forbes.com, 6 June 2026

Not that that won’t matter at Michigan State, but Fitzgerald won’t be restricted by academic standards in the same way. —Antonio Morales, New York Times, 5 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French achademique, academique, borrowed from Latin Acadēmicus "of the school of Plato," borrowed from Greek Akadēmeikós, Akadēmaikós, from Akadḗmeia, a place where Plato taught + -ikos -ic entry 1 — more at academy

First Known Use

1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing academic

• academic freedom
• academic year
• anti-academic

Rhymes for academic

• epidemic
• epistemic
• anaemic
• endemic
• glycemic
• pandemic
• polemic
• systemic
• chemic
• remic
• hypovolemic
• nonacademic

Kids Definition

academic

adjective

ac·​a·​dem·​ic

ˌak-ə-ˈdem-ik

1

: of or relating to school or college

2

: literary or general rather than technical

took the academic course

3

: having no practical importance : theoretical

an academic question

academically

-ˈdem-i-k(ə-)lē

adverb