campus
Americannoun
plural
campuses-
the grounds, often including the buildings, of a college, university, or school.
-
a college or university.
The large influx of older students radically changed many campuses throughout the country.
-
a division of a university that has its own grounds, buildings, and faculty but is administratively joined to the rest of the university.
-
the world of higher education.
Foundation grants have had a marked effect on the character of the American campus.
-
a large, usually suburban, landscaped business or industrial site.
noun
-
the grounds and buildings of a university
-
the outside area of a college, university, etc
Other Word Forms
- intercampus adjective
- noncampus adjective
Etymology
Origin of campus
1765–75, < Latin: flat place, field, plain
Explanation
The land and various buildings that make up a college are its campus. If you live on campus, you'll be close to your classes. When you hear the word campus, you generally think of a college or university, which include libraries and labs and classrooms and dormitories, all of which make up a campus. Other institutions, including hospitals, high schools, and some companies' office buildings, also have campuses. The word campus is Latin for "a field" or "an expanse surrounded."
Vocabulary lists containing campus
The Vocabulary of College
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for April 27–May 3, 2024
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The First State of Being
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The teaching is delivered under contract by a private company at weekends in a small campus in east London.
From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026
In the next 10 years, Goucher College’s partnership with Edenwald Senior Living is expected to create a campus that is one-third traditional-age students, one-third midcareer learners and one-third retirees, Nichols said.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026
He has previously gone after Harvard for its handling of campus antisemitism and its management of shares he donated to endow a chair.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026
A video went viral; flyers spread across the city, notably on the nearby campus of Rutgers University.
From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026
Which wasn’t something I could say about any other professor on campus.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
