summer camp

noun

plural summer camps

1

: a camp (see camp entry 1 sense 1d) for children or adolescents that operates during the summer and that often provides lodging for stays of days or weeks

… traditional summer camps—where your child rides a horse, paddles a canoe, reads a compass, and roasts s'mores around a campfire …

—David Lansing

… summer camp is about campfires, trail hikes and goofy skits. It's a chance to meet kids from different cities and to learn to sleep through the snores of cabin mates.

—Emily Seftel

also : such a camp that provides instruction of a specified kind

went to an arts summer camp

compare day camp

2

: an online usually educational program for children or adolescents offered during the summer

… a virtual summer camp offering free classes in everything from slime-making to dinosaurs to make-your-own Lego movies. Kids aged five through 18 can create their own schedule, with hour-long classes five days a week for each session.

—Lisa Milbrand

Examples of summer camp in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Still, by the end of summer camp, with the season fast approaching, Iheanachor was nowhere close to being ready to play at a high level. —Mike Defabo, New York Times, 1 June 2026

Places to stay range from tiny boutique properties to resorts that feel like summer camp for all ages. —Jacqueline Dole, Travel + Leisure, 31 May 2026

Among the victims were dozens of children, including young girls at Camp Mystic, a summer camp along the Guadalupe River. —Julie Kaplow, USA Today, 30 May 2026

The center canceled its summer camp, but the mosque has reopened and continues to draw crowds to prayers. —Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 May 2026

With school out for most kids and summer camp, travel plans, or just a lot of outdoor play on the horizon, summer is a beloved time for many children. —Anna Halkidis, Parents, 29 May 2026

Tie-dye and neon nails give off a nostalgic vibe reminiscent of craft days at summer camp. —Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 29 May 2026

There is no simpler road trip, beach, lake, fishing trip, or summer camp snack accessory than this. —Abigail Wilt, Southern Living, 29 May 2026

There, a man killed 77 people, including dozens of teenagers at a summer camp. —Odette Yousef, NPR, 27 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1882, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for summer camp

• firedamp
• amp
• champ
• clamp
• cramp
• damp
• gamp
• lamp
• ramp
• samp
• scamp
• stamp