matriculate

verb

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ma·tric·u·late | \ mə-ˈtri-kyə-ˌlāt

matriculated; matriculating

Definition of matriculate

transitive verb

: to enroll as a member of a body and especially of a college or university

intransitive verb

: to be enrolled at a college or university She matriculated at the state university.

Other Words from matriculate Synonyms & Antonyms Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about matriculate

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Did You Know?

Anybody who has had basic Latin knows that alma mater, a fancy term for the school you attended, comes from a phrase that means "fostering mother." If mater is "mother," then matriculate probably has something to do with a school nurturing you just like good old mom, right? Not exactly. If you go back far enough, matriculate is distantly related to the Latin mater, but its maternal associations were lost long ago. It is more closely related to Late Latin matricula, which means "public roll or register," and it has more to do with being enrolled than being mothered.

Examples of matriculate in a Sentence

the college matriculated 1000 students for the fall semester

Recent Examples on the Web The coaches and administrators are actively bringing students to campus to matriculate alongside the general student body. — John Canzano | The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, "Canzano: Report underscores need for NCAA to take action on sex assault and violent conduct offenses," 13 Dec. 2019 The two restaurant managers matriculated through another nonprofit in Cleveland, Edwins Leadership and Restaurant Institute, which trains ex-offenders for jobs in the culinary world. — Michael K. Mcintyre, cleveland, "West Side Catholic Center serves ‘often invisible’ population: Cleveland Champions," 13 Dec. 2019 Nearly 15 percent of the students flown in will be athletes who have been identified by Amherst coaches, and in many cases those athletes eventually choose to matriculate. — Bill Pennington, New York Times, "The Real Cost of Diversifying College Rosters," 7 Nov. 2019 Hodge’s daughter matriculated at USC in 2013, but never played soccer for the school, prosecutors said. — Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, "Ex-CEO of PIMCO to plead guilty in college admissions scandal," 17 Oct. 2019 About 33 percent of matriculating students identified as African, Latino, Hispanic, Asian, Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, or Native American. — Alyssa Lukpat, BostonGlobe.com, "UMass Amherst, Lowell enroll largest-ever entering classes," 30 Aug. 2019 But these young ladies, unlike a hapless Edith Wharton character on the hunt for a wealthy husband (who, in Wharton’s world, often turn out hapless, too), will soon matriculate to top universities around the nation. — Catherine Bigelow, SFChronicle.com, "55th San Francisco Debutante Ball a swirl of society for 28 young women," 1 July 2019 Owusu-Koramoah, who skipped kindergarten and matriculated to Notre Dame at age 17, regularly played up by a year or two on the AAU circuit. — Mike Berardino, Indianapolis Star, "Notre Dame's Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah has all the attributes to be wrecking ball at rover," 7 June 2019 Big donations also help get children admitted, whether to encourage a legacy decision at one’s alma mater or even at schools one didn’t attend, as when Charles Kushner gave $2.5 million to Harvard before his son Jared matriculated. — Ben Steverman, Bloomberg.com, "Rich Parents Have Plenty of Ways to Game the U.S. Education System," 12 Mar. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'matriculate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

28 Dec 2019

Cite this Entry

“Matriculate.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/matriculating. Accessed 24 January 2020.

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