academic

American  

[ak-uh-dem-ik] / ˌæk əˈdɛm ɪk /

adjective

1. 

   of or relating to a college, academy, school, or other educational institution.

   academic requirements.

2. pertaining to areas of study that are not primarily vocational or applied, as the humanities or pure mathematics.

   Synonyms:

   liberal, humanist

3. theoretical or hypothetical; not practical, realistic, or directly useful.

   an academic question;

   an academic discussion of a matter already decided.

4. learned or scholarly but lacking in worldliness, common sense, or practicality.

   Synonyms:

   theoretical

5. conforming to set rules, standards, or traditions; conventional.

   academic painting.

6. acquired by formal education, especially at a college or university.

   academic preparation for the ministry.

7. Academic, of or relating to Academe or to the Platonic school of philosophy.

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noun

• academics
  plural

1. a student or teacher at a college or university.

2. a person who is academic in background, attitudes, methods, etc..

   He was by temperament an academic, concerned with books and the arts.

3. Academic, a person who supports or advocates the Platonic school of philosophy.

4. academics, the scholarly activities of a school or university, as classroom studies or research projects.

   more emphasis on academics and less on athletics.

academic British  

/ ˌækəˈdɛmɪk /

adjective

1. belonging or relating to a place of learning, esp a college, university, or academy

2. of purely theoretical or speculative interest

   an academic argument

3. excessively concerned with intellectual matters and lacking experience of practical affairs

4. (esp of a schoolchild) having an aptitude for study

5. conforming to set rules and traditions; conventional

   an academic painter

6. relating to studies such as languages, philosophy, and pure science, rather than applied, technical, or professional studies

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noun

1. a member of a college or university

Synonym Usage

See formal.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• antiacademic
  adjective
• interacademic
  adjective
• nonacademic
  adjective
• proacademic
  adjective
• pseudoacademic
  adjective
• quasi-academic
  adjective
• semiacademic
  adjective
• subacademic
  adjective
• unacademic
  adjective
• academically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• academics
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of academic

First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin Acadēmicus, from Greek Akadēmeikós. See academy, academe, -ic

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Explanation

Something that is academic is related to school. Your parents might want to spend less time playing video games and more time focusing on academic pursuits. The noun academic refers to a professor or scholar. As a noun or an adjective, academic relates to book learning and not always in a good way. An academic discussion back in Plato's Academy was probably something better than what it has more recently come to mean: a discussion that's academic has no place in the real world; it's not practical. An academic might have a PhD in Robotics but not know how to work the TV. It doesn't have to mean stuffy, though, just related to college — like when you need an academic gown for graduation.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

academic academics

While he declined to reveal to CNN how much the diamond was insured for, he noted that extensive academic study into the properties of the diamond had taken place to make it uniquely identifiable.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

"On foreign and security policy, Macron is in a strong position right now. On economic issues he's weak," academic Nicoli said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

One recent academic study calculated that American data-center hyperscalers alone would need to earn revenue equal to roughly 9% of gross domestic product per year by 2032 to break even on their investments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

“California has made important strides in expanding student supports and opportunities, but the pace of academic improvement reminds us that our work is far from finished,” Thurmond said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

At some point, she was put on academic probation, but even that didn’t seem to bother her much.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

He listed some of those efforts, which include a new grade of school, transitional kindergarten for 4-year-olds; free school meals for all; and community schools, which provide services for students and families beyond academics.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

He and a half-dozen other academics have thus decided the dates every recession began and ended since.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Chinese academics have previously questioned Japan’s hold on the Ryukyu Islands, which include Okinawa, and the Senkaku Islands, an uninhabited group to the northeast of Taiwan.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Sparking debate among academics, Harvard College Dean David Deming has suggested the "acceptance, or even encouragement" of AI in writing-based courses, according to the Harvard Crimson student newspaper.

From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026

If I thought balancing academics and athletics in high school was challenging, college was ten times more intense.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

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Related Words

• academician
• lecturer
• professor
• scholar
• student

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