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• fellow
  fellow

  noun

  a man or boy.
• Fellow
  Fellow

  noun

  a member of any of various learned societies

fellow

American  

[fel-oh] / ˈfɛl oʊ /

noun

• fellows
  plural

1. a man or boy.

   a fine old fellow; a nice little fellow.

2. Informal. beau; suitor.

   Mary had her fellow over to meet her folks.

3. Informal. person; one.

   They don't treat a fellow very well here.

4. a person of small worth or no esteem.

5. a companion; comrade; associate.

   They have been fellows since childhood.

6. a person belonging to the same rank or class; equal; peer.

   The doctor conferred with his fellows.

7. one of a pair; mate; match.

   a shoe without its fellow.

8. Education.

   1. a graduate student of a university or college to whom an allowance is granted for special study.

   2. British. an incorporated member of a college, entitled to certain privileges.

   3. a member of the corporation or board of trustees of certain universities or colleges.

9. a member of any of certain learned societies.

   a fellow of the British Academy.

10. Obsolete. a partner.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make or represent as equal with another.

2. Archaic. to produce a fellow to; match.

adjective

1. belonging to the same class or group; united by the same occupation, interests, etc.; being in the same condition.

   fellow students; fellow sufferers.

fellow ¹ British  

/ ˈfɛləʊ /

noun

1. a man or boy

2. an informal word for boyfriend

3. informal one or oneself

   a fellow has to eat

4. a person considered to be of little importance or worth

5. 1. (often plural) a companion; comrade; associate

   2. ( as modifier )

      fellow travellers

6. (at Oxford and Cambridge universities) a member of the governing body of a college, who is usually a member of the teaching staff

7. a member of the governing body or established teaching staff at any of various universities or colleges

8. a postgraduate student employed, esp for a fixed period, to undertake research and, often, to do some teaching

9. 1. a person in the same group, class, or condition

      the surgeon asked his fellows

   2. ( as modifier )

      fellow students

      a fellow sufferer

10. one of a pair; counterpart; mate

    looking for the glove's fellow

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Fellow ² British  

/ ˈfɛləʊ /

noun

1. a member of any of various learned societies

   Fellow of the British Academy

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fellow Idioms  

1. see regular guy (fellow); strange bedfellows.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fellows
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of fellow

before 1050; Middle English felowe, felawe, late Old English fēolaga < Old Norse fēlagi partner in a joint undertaking, equivalent to fē money, property (cognate with Old English feoh, German Vieh ) + -lagi bedfellow, comrade; akin to lair ¹, lie ²

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Explanation

Fellow is an old fashioned word for “guy.” If you’re wearing a top hat, you may address someone as “my good fellow.” It’s also a non-stuffy word to describe people in the same situation, such as you and your fellow Vocabulary.com fans. Other words for fellow include "chap" and "dude." A fellow can also be someone’s boyfriend, as in “Is he your fellow?” an interested suitor might ask. Another kind of fellow is an academic who's either reached a high position or won a prestigious scholarship. A MacArthur Fellow, for example, is a person who won a MacArthur fellowship (a well-deserved hunk of money). Fellow comes from an Old English word, feolaga, "one who shares with another."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fellow Fellow fellows

Her fellow actor Koji thinks it's a winning formula.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

In New York he made friends with a large group of gifted fellow students, including Rockwell Kent, George Bellows and Guy Pène du Bois.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Abdel's friend and fellow student El Hadj, 17, said pupils were also fighting for the next generation.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

For the past five years, Sweet and fellow graduate student Mat Bloomfield have worked with cell biologist Daniela Cimini to investigate cells carrying abnormal numbers of chromosomes, a common characteristic of cancer.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026

The desperate fellow had been glad to accept a tenth of the jewel’s worth.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

"The surprising question is: how can something so small energetically impact something so enormous?" said Roy, assistant professor at RRI and former ASU Exploration Prize Postdoctoral Fellow.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026

Fellow stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Kristin Davis, and Cynthia Nixon issued a statement at the time, praising the women for coming forward and made it clear that they supported them.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026

Fellow big screen charmer Richard E. Grant, 69, who starred in films such as Withnail and I, may also leave some of the less well-known celebrities star-struck at first, as might American-British supermodel/actress Jerry Hall.

From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026

She served as a Puffin Fellow at the Nation magazine, a Ledecky Fellow at Harvard Magazine and a magazine editor for the Harvard Crimson.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

He was a Fellow of the Royal Society and a professor of mathematics.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

It said fellows receive no product discounts, financial perks or requirements to use Google tools.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

He is an internationally recognized expert in heart-rhythm disorders, has helped develop innovative therapies for cardiac arrhythmias, and has authored over 450 scientific publications and trained hundreds of cardiology fellows.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 3, 2026

The Salvadoran breakfast blended the two, a stage outside the U.S. spotlight, with Suozzi navigating the overlap awkwardly as he and his fellows sang The Fellowship’s praises, without naming it or divulging many details.

From Salon ● May 29, 2026

UCL's dinosaur evolution team includes five academics along with research fellows, postdoctoral researchers, and more than 10 PhD students.

From Science Daily ● May 15, 2026

“But you fellows lost your shirts,” Zack gloated, “when the John went down!”

From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham

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Related Words

• boy
• chap
• dude
• guy
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