adjunct professor
Americannoun
Usage
What does adjunct professor mean? An adjunct professor is a college or university professor whose employment is temporary or part-time. Adjunct professor (often shortened to simply adjunct) is typically used to indicate that a professor does not have tenure or is not eligible for tenure. Tenure is a status granted to some professors (after they reach a certain amount of experience) that makes their position essentially permanent. Due to the temporary or part-time status of adjunct professors, this title sometimes carries a connotation that associates it with the difficulties of being in such a position, such as job insecurity and lack of benefits. Example: My math professor is an adjunct professor so he might not be here next semester.
Etymology
Origin of adjunct professor
First recorded in 1820–30
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.
Bajaj, an adjunct professor at Stanford’s School of Medicine who previously co-founded Google’s life sciences division, said the company’s goal is to build AI systems that can assist throughout the entire engineering process.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 11, 2026
In the suburbs of New York City, “inventory is just about as tight as it’s ever been,” says Jonathan Miller, an adjunct professor at Columbia University and the CEO of appraisal firm Miller Samuel.
From Barron's • May 31, 2026
She taught for six years as an adjunct professor at Southwestern Law School and serves on its Women in Leadership board.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026
Mr. Adubato is an associate editor of Compact, an adjunct professor of philosophy and religion at Seton Hall University, and a founding editor of the website Cracks in Postmodernity.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026
“Yes. She is now teaching in America. She shares a cramped office with another adjunct professor, but she says at least teachers are paid there.”
From "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
