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

Woodward had been athletic director at his alma mater since 2019 after stints at Washington and Texas A&M. —The Athletic Staff, New York Times, 31 Oct. 2025

Meanwhile, Burrell, who attended the school in the late 1980s, was showing love for his alma mater. —Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Oct. 2025

Underly drew further criticism for skipping a state Capitol hearing on the issue to accept an award at her alma mater. —Molly Beck, jsonline.com, 24 Oct. 2025

Forced to enroll at Nevermore Academy — her parents' alma mater for misfit monsters — Wednesday finds herself in the middle of a decades-long mystery, using her wit and psychic abilities to solve the boarding school's deepest, darkest secrets. —Kelsie Gibson, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin, fostering mother

First Known Use

1650, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for alma mater

• annunciator
• imprimatur
• underwater
• backwater
• bathwater
• blackwater
• breakwater
• deepwater
• edgewater
• feedwater
• floodwater
• freshwater

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