educated
Americanadjective
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having undergone education.
educated people.
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characterized by or displaying qualities of culture and learning.
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based on some information or experience.
an educated estimate of next year's sales.
adjective
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having an education, esp a good one
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displaying culture, taste, and knowledge; cultivated
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(prenominal) based on experience or information (esp in the phrase an educated guess )
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of educated
Explanation
If you're educated, you've been to school or college, or otherwise been instructed or trained. Using long, fancy words will either make people think you're educated or that you're a show-off. When you make an educated decision about something, you've learned about the subject before making up your mind — you've been educated or educated yourself, and you understand it completely. An educated conversation or debate about a topic is one in which both sides have knowledge about the issues. Educated comes from educate, with its Latin root, educare, which means both "educate" and "bring up or rear children."
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.
Born in Wakefield in 1960 and educated at Lady Lumley's Comprehensive School, Pickering, and Peter's School in York, he studied social and political science at Christ's College, Cambridge.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
The oil curse will lay less heavily on its people, as it already has its neighbors—oil-rich governments once typically didn’t need to care whether their subjects were enterprising, productive and educated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
AI systems are increasingly capable of performing the creative, analytical and strategic work that was once the exclusive province of educated, well-paid professionals.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026
He co-authored the influential textbook Quantum Optics, a resource that has educated generations of physicists.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 5, 2026
His excellent manners, educated voice, and physical poise marked him as a gentleman.
From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson
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.
