Synonyms of scholarship

scholarship

noun

ˈskä-lər-ˌship 

as in literacy

the understanding and information gained from being educated

the historian's new book displays a remarkable level of scholarship

Synonyms & Similar Words

• literacy
• knowledge
• education
• learning
• erudition
• culture
• learnedness
• enlightenment
• edification
• reading
• pedantry
• bookishness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ignorance
• illiteracy
• illiterateness
• functional illiteracy

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun scholarship differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of scholarship are erudition, knowledge, and learning. While all these words mean "what is or can be known by an individual or by humankind," 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

When might erudition be a better fit than scholarship?

The synonyms erudition and scholarship are sometimes interchangeable, but erudition strongly implies the acquiring of profound, recondite, or bookish learning.

an erudition unusual even in a scholar

Where would knowledge be a reasonable alternative to scholarship?

Although the words knowledge and scholarship have much in common, knowledge applies to facts or ideas acquired by study, investigation, observation, or experience.

rich in the knowledge of human nature

When is learning a more appropriate choice than scholarship?

The words learning and scholarship are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, learning applies to knowledge acquired especially through formal, often advanced, schooling.

a book that demonstrates vast learning

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of scholarship

Eric Ives, David Starkey, David Loades, GR Elton, Amy Licence, Suzannah Lipscombe, Gareth Russell, Eamon Duffy who have led an explosion of Tudor scholarship and much of it is genuinely new research and thinking. —Phillipa Gregory, PEOPLE, 4 Oct. 2025

At 16, Murati won a scholarship from United World Colleges—a program that brings together students from over 80 countries to promote intercultural understanding and social responsibility—to study at Pearson College on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. —Dave Smith, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025

Browne was in attendance for Boise State’s 47-14 win over App State last weekend and also visited campus last spring, a few months after the program initially offered him a scholarship. —Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 3 Oct. 2025

Additionally, the summit will present the NextGen Scholars Initiative, which provides $5,000 scholarships to first-generation college students at institutions including UCLA, California State University Northridge and Otis College of Art and Design. —Giana Levy, Variety, 3 Oct. 2025