scholar

noun

schol·​ar ˈskä-lər 

1

: a person who attends a school or studies under a teacher : pupil

2

a

: a person who has done advanced study in a special field

b

: a learned person

3

: a holder of a scholarship

Synonyms of scholar

• teacher
• sage
• pundit
• savant
• wizard

Examples of scholar in a Sentence

She's a renowned scholar of African-American history.

scholars have long debated whether there is ever such a thing as a truly selfless act

Recent Examples on the Web

During the conference, the scholars are networking and attending sessions focused on student success and its role in economic mobility and community prosperity. —Mike Danahey, Chicago Tribune, 5 Mar. 2026

Yet other senior scholars, notably Sheikh Fazlollah Nouri, branded constitutionalism a Western import and sided with the court against the revolution. —Bobby Ghosh, Time, 5 Mar. 2026

Pegah Banihashemi, a native of Iran, is a legal scholar and journalist in Chicago whose work focuses on human rights, constitutional and international law, and Middle East politics. —Pegah Banihashemi, Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2026

Shakespeare scholars have generally interpreted that to mean that although none of the individual explanations are all that convincing, the sentiment behind them is crushingly powerful. —Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English scoler, from Old English scolere & Anglo-French escoler, from Medieval Latin scholaris, from Late Latin, of a school, from Latin schola school

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing scholar

• Rhodes scholar

Rhymes for scholar

• caller
• collar
• crawler
• dollar
• faller
• haller
• hauler
• holler
• smaller
• squalor
• taller
• trawler

Kids Definition

scholar

noun

schol·​ar ˈskäl-ər 

1

: a person who attends a school or studies under a teacher : pupil

2

a

: a person who has done advanced study in a special area

b

: a learned person

3

: a holder of a scholarship

scholarly adjective