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

Fellow Hawks guard Terance Mann also joined his alma mater, Florida State, as assistant GM in early April. —Lauren Merola, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2025

Bibby has no college coaching experience but recently led his high school alma mater Phoenix Shadow Mountain to five state championships. —Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2025

Wright left the Vikings to join his alma mater, serving as an assistant on former Bowling Green coach Michael Huger’s staff from 2020-23. —Andy Theobald, Kansas City Star, 29 Apr. 2025

Greek students are also more likely to be employed after graduation and are more likely to report a positive attachment to their alma mater. —Wynn Smiley, Baltimore Sun, 24 Apr. 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