A level
Americannoun
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a public examination requiring advanced knowledge in a subject and taken at the end of secondary school, usually two years after O level.
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a pass in this examination.
noun
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a public examination in a subject taken for the General Certificate of Education ( GCE ), usually at the age of 17–18
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the course leading to this examination
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( as modifier )
A-level maths
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a pass in a particular subject at A level
she has three A levels
Etymology
Origin of A level
1950–55; A(dvanced) level
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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.
A level above 50 signals growth in private sector business activity.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026
A level series and evidence the stand-in Australia captain was spending more time thinking about Monty Panesar than the Ashes.
From BBC • Jan. 7, 2026
A level shift offers a dramatic experience when you step into the ADU, as the floor drops below to the art studio and the ceiling goes up, creating a sense of spaciousness.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 8, 2025
A level lay on the ground next to the headstone they were about to place.
From New York Times • Aug. 6, 2023
And I started feeling a pain in my chest like I did on the underground because I thought I wasn’t going to be able to go back to Swindon and take my A level.
From "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" by Mark Haddon
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.
