university

noun

uni·​ver·​si·​ty ˌyü-nə-ˈvər-sə-tē 

-ˈvər-stē

plural universities

1

: an institution of higher learning providing facilities for teaching and research and authorized to grant academic degrees

specifically : one made up of an undergraduate division which confers bachelor's degrees and a graduate division which comprises a graduate school and professional schools each of which may confer master's degrees and doctorates

2

: the physical plant of a university

Examples of university in a Sentence

I applied to several public universities.

He lives near the university.

Recent Examples on the Web

Sarah Nuwayhid in Beirut is in her first year of university, an important milestone in any young person’s life, but the war between Israel and Hezbollah upended her plans. —Sarah Dean, NBC news, 25 Apr. 2026

Before the contract was signed in early 2023, state ethics officials warned that the MDE employee could not participate in matters involving coworkers at the university. —Christine Condon, Baltimore Sun, 24 Apr. 2026

During his tenure, Stanford became the top fundraising school in the nation, the first to exceed $1 billion in a year, and Hennessy oversaw the construction of more than 70 new buildings; the university’s reputation skyrocketed, and its admissions rate dropped by 70 percent. —Theo Baker, The Atlantic, 24 Apr. 2026

Researchers evaluated and recorded the same 28 characteristics for each species based on preexisting data from universities and government agencies, Nunez-Mir said. —Madeline King, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English universite, from Anglo-French université, from Medieval Latin universitat-, universitas, from Latin universus

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing university

• anti-university
• go to university
• inter-university
• pre-university
• state university

Rhymes for university

• adversity
• diversity
• perversity
• biodiversity
• polydispersity

Kids Definition

university

noun

uni·​ver·​si·​ty ˌyü-nə-ˈvər-sət-ē 

-ˈvər-stē

plural universities

: a school that offers courses leading to a degree (as a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree) and where research is done