scholarship

noun

schol·​ar·​ship ˈskä-lər-ˌship 

1

: a grant-in-aid to a student (as by a college or foundation)

2

: the character, qualities, activity, or attainments of a scholar : learning

3

: a fund of knowledge and learning

drawing on the scholarship of the ancients

Synonyms

• education
• erudition
• knowledge
• learnedness
• learning
• literacy

Choose the Right Synonym for scholarship

knowledge, learning, erudition, scholarship mean what is or can be known by an individual or by humankind.

knowledge applies to facts or ideas acquired by study, investigation, observation, or experience.

rich in the knowledge of human nature

learning applies to knowledge acquired especially through formal, often advanced, schooling.

a book that demonstrates vast learning

erudition strongly implies the acquiring of profound, recondite, or bookish learning.

an erudition unusual even in a scholar

scholarship implies the possession of learning characteristic of the advanced scholar in a specialized field of study or investigation.

a work of first-rate literary scholarship

Examples of scholarship in a Sentence

She got a scholarship to Yale University.

The organization is offering five $5,000 scholarships.

The essay is a work of serious scholarship.

The book is about his life and scholarship.

Recent Examples on the Web

Harper has seven scholarship spots remaining to meet the new NCAA Division 15-player roster cap. —Kevin Utz, Kansas City Star, 9 Apr. 2025

Future scholarship dollars could also potentially be reallocated under the increasing financial burden of revenue sharing, which will largely be directed to revenue sports. —Justin Williams, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025

Traditionally, schools have managed team sizes via scholarship limits — such as 85 for football, 13 for men's basketball, 14 for women's swimming and 11.7 for baseball — and those scholarships could be doled out in part or in whole. —Becky Sullivan, NPR, 7 Apr. 2025

Wilken listened and occasionally asked questions but gave no indication that the concerns would upend the settlement, which also calls for replacing scholarship limits with roster limits. —Janie McCauley, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1536, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing scholarship

• football scholarship
• full scholarship

Rhymes for scholarship

• authorship
• battleship
• censorship
• chairmanship
• chieftainship
• comradeship
• consulship
• craftsmanship
• dealership
• draftsmanship
• fellowship
• fingertip

Kids Definition

scholarship

noun

schol·​ar·​ship ˈskäl-ər-ˌship 

1

: money given (as by a college) to a student to help pay for further education

2

: the character, qualities, or achievements of a scholar