syllabus

play

noun syl·la·bus \ -bəs \

Definition of syllabus

plural syllabi play \-ˌbī, -ˌbē\ or syllabuses

1 :a summary outline of a discourse, treatise, or course of study or of examination requirements

2 :headnote 2

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Recent Examples of syllabus from the Web

Cooking and baking classes are plentiful in Wisconsin, in locations that may surprise you, plus there are a handful of dedicated cooking schools with a permanent spot on the syllabus.

— travel wisconsin, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "No Such Thing as Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen," 28 Aug. 2017
Read the entire syllabus for an advanced course in the art of B.S. here.

— alex french, Esquire, "Bob Costas's Guide to BS'ing Your Way Through a Sports Conversation," 24 Aug. 2017
In lieu of a beauty-centric syllabus, here’s everything to get the look.

— jenna rennert, Vogue, "Cher Horowitz vs. Angela Chase: Who's Your Back-to-School Beauty Guru?," 18 Aug. 2017
From the unraveling of allegations at big-name institutions (Duke University, University of Virginia) to art thefts at Transylvania University, Schools for Scandal presents a syllabus’s worth of riveting journalism.

— sloane crosley, Vanities, "What to Read This Month: Katy Tur’s Unbelievable, Claire Messud’s The Burning Girl, and More," 17 Aug. 2017
From the unraveling of allegations at big-name institutions (Duke University, University of Virginia) to art thefts at Transylvania University, Schools for Scandal presents a syllabus’s worth of riveting journalism.

— sloane crosley, Vanities, "What to Read This Month: Katy Tur’s Unbelievable, Claire Messud’s The Burning Girl, and More," 17 Aug. 2017
From the unraveling of allegations at big-name institutions (Duke University, University of Virginia) to art thefts at Transylvania University, Schools for Scandal presents a syllabus’s worth of riveting journalism.

— sloane crosley, vanityfair.com, "What to Read This Month: Katy Tur’s Unbelievable, Claire Messud’s The Burning Girl, and More," 14 Aug. 2017
A killer syllabus is nothing without good teaching, but a stellar professor can make a standard class life-changing.

— miamiherald, "The freshman are coming to campus! Learn the secrets to keeping them there and happy," 8 Aug. 2017
That 1949 novel, a staple of high school syllabuses, has returned to the best-seller lists since the inauguration of Donald J. Trump, jibing with worries about the rebirth of fascism in democratic countries.

— ben brantley, New York Times, "Review: Doubling Down on Doublespeak in ‘1984’," 22 June 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of syllabus

Late Latin, alteration of Latin sillybus label for a book, from Greek sillybos

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1656

See Words from the same year

Other Education Terms

baccalaureate, colloquium, corequisite, dissertation, monograph, pedant, practicum, survey course, thesis

SYLLABUS Defined for English Language Learners

syllabus

play

noun

Definition of syllabus for English Language Learners

: a list of the topics or books that will be studied in a course

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