extracurricular

adjective

ex·​tra·​cur·​ric·​u·​lar ˌek-strə-kə-ˈri-kyə-lər 

1

: not falling within the scope of a regular curriculum

specifically : of or relating to officially or semiofficially approved and usually organized student activities (such as athletics) connected with school and usually carrying no academic credit

extracurricular sports

2

a

: lying outside one's regular duties or routine

b

: extramarital

extracurricular noun

Synonyms of extracurricular

• extramarital
• adulterous

Examples of extracurricular in a Sentence

hired a private detective to investigate her husband's extracurricular activities

Recent Examples on the Web

Her father said balancing academics, volunteering and extracurricular activities hasn’t always been easy. —Nancy Badertscher, AJC.com, 16 Feb. 2026

Jeremy Fears, Michigan State Fears’ extracurricular activities on the court have made the most noise lately. —Jim Root, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2026

Robb demonstrates excellence in both her academic and extracurricular pursuits. —Darla Rivera, Oklahoman, 9 Feb. 2026

To avoid being fired from a day job over her extracurricular activities, Hoffman, whose real first name is Rivkah, adopted a stage name. —Sonia Rao, Washington Post, 7 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1885, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for extracurricular

• periarticular
• supraclavicular
• acicular
• articular
• curricular
• cuticular
• funicular
• lenticular
• navicular
• particular
• radicular
• reticular

Kids Definition

extracurricular

adjective

ex·​tra·​cur·​ric·​u·​lar ˌek-strə-kə-ˈrik-yə-lər 

: of or relating to those activities (as athletics) that are offered by a school but are not part of the course of study