syllabus

noun

syl·​la·​bus ˈsi-lə-bəs 

plural syllabi ˈsi-lə-ˌbī 

-ˌbē

or syllabuses

1

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

2

: headnote sense 2

Examples of syllabus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That is not on this show’s syllabus. —Sandra Gonzalez, CNN Money, 5 Dec. 2025

Unions representing college faculty members have challenged a state Department of Education plan that would expand requirements for professors to post syllabi and other course material online. —Jim Saunders, Miami Herald, 1 Dec. 2025

Indeed, a colleague once asked me to identify a prominent conservative intellectual who was pro-Trump to provide some balance to a syllabus. —Bradley Gitz, Arkansas Online, 24 Nov. 2025

In contexts not concerning the elite private colleges of New England and their decades-old conflicts and syllabi and on-campus squabbles, this mode of prestige media procedure matters absolutely and enormously, at scales difficult to tabulate. —Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

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

First Known Use

circa 1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

syllabus

noun

syl·​la·​bus ˈsil-ə-bəs 

plural syllabi -ˌbī 

-ˌbē

or syllabuses

: a brief outline (as of a course of study)