freshman
Americannoun
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freshmen
plural
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a student in the first year of the course at a university, college, or high school.
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a novice; beginner.
adjective
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of, relating to, or characteristic of a freshman.
to outgrow one's freshman attitudes.
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lacking seniority or experience; junior.
a freshman senator.
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required of or suitable for freshmen.
freshman courses.
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initial; first.
This is my freshman year with the company.
Gender
See -man.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of freshman
Explanation
A freshman is a student in her first year of high school or college. Being a college freshman can be a little overwhelming — it's a huge change in most people's lives. Sometimes a freshman is called a "first-year student," a term that isn't so gender-specific. However, you can also use the word freshman for a a boy or a girl. Sometimes, rather than school, a freshman is new at something else: in the US Senate, first-timers are frequently called "freshman senators." The word combines the "inexperienced" sense of fresh with man, or "person."
Vocabulary lists containing freshman
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.
See Examples For:
Who could image that a freshman quarterback, Paytyn Guess, would put together two drives that required less than two minutes to deliver victory?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026
Bel, who graduated from Springfield High in May, had been fitted with an ankle monitor just before his freshman year of college.
From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2026
The measures include capping high school freshman classes at 28 students and creating 15,000 new university places.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026
Against a majorly depleted Michigan State team fielding a freshman third-stringer at quarterback — that also lost two more of its best players to injury in the first half?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2026
The biggest trophy in there is for the science fair project he did in his freshman year.
From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina
Remedies Cornell eventually introduced included banning freshmen from attending Greek parties during their first semester and shortening the pledging period from eight weeks to four to reduce opportunities for hazing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Many freshmen specifically seek out colleges and universities with robust Greek-life programs, and participation is on the rise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
Some of the freshmen, or first-year students, who spoke to the BBC had only arrived at Cornell last month.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
Together the introductory courses make up about 5% of the classes freshmen take, ranging from 2% at UC Irvine to 12% at UC Merced.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
When I was assigned to teach freshmen with below-par reading skills, the head of the English department challenged me, saying, “Let’s see what you can do with these kids, hotshot!”
From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers
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