alumna

American  

[uh-luhm-nuh] / əˈlʌm nə /

noun

• alumnae
  plural

1. a woman who is a graduate or former student of a specific school, college, or university.

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alumna British  

/ əˈlʌmnə /

noun

1. a female graduate of a school, college, etc

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Usage

What’s the difference between alumna, alumnus, and alumni? An alumna is a female graduate of a school, such as a high school or university. In Latin, alumnus specifically refers to a male graduate, and sometimes this distinction is carried into English. However, alumnus is also commonly used in a gender-neutral way, as is its plural, alumni. What is the plural of alumna?The plural of alumna is alumnae. This follows the plural ending construction used in other Latin-derived words, like antenna and antennae. The informal shortening alum is used to refer to a single graduate (regardless of gender). It’s sometimes pluralized as alums. Here’s an example of alumna and alumnae used correctly in the same sentence. Example: As an alumna, you share something with all of the alumnae, regardless of when each of you graduated. Want to learn more? Read the breakdown of the difference between alumnus and alumni.

Gender

What's the difference between alumna, alumnus, and alum? See alumnus.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• alumnae
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of alumna

An Americanism dating back to 1840–45; from Latin: literally, “foster daughter, pupil”; feminine of alumnus

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Explanation

Alumna is the feminine form of "alumnus," meaning someone who graduated from a school. An alumna is a female graduate. This word sometimes means a graduate of either gender, but it's most commonly a woman who graduates from any school — whether grammar school, high school, college, university, or med school. Schools are often proud of a famous alumna, and there might be pictures on the wall to honor them. As an alumna, you might go back for school reunions. When you're talking about a group of graduates, the word is alumni, which usually means men and women.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

alumna alumnae

Sink would be the third actress to play the role, after Famke Janssen and “Game of Thrones” alumna Sophie Turner.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

The “Oh Yeah” and “Bad Habit” singer also allegedly spilled the beans on “Stranger Things” alumna Sadie Sink‘s “Spider-Man” character, which Marvel has kept tightly under wraps.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Among the well wishers in the comments were TV presenter Rochelle Humes, TV personality Stacey Solomon, and Love Island alumna Maura Higgins.

From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026

Sara is an alumna of the University of Virginia and Columbia University's School of Journalism.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 3, 2026

Patients, with accompanying nurses, made their rounds of the stocked shelves, conversing in low tones, with the asylum librarian, an alumna of the asylum herself.

From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath

They were ultimately swayed, he said, by appeals from more than a thousand of the camp’s alumnae loyalists and families eager for their daughters to return this summer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 18, 2026

The College of Charleston is nearly 70% female, and those alumnae opened up my understanding of this whole story.

From Salon ● Apr. 5, 2024

The petition had been launched by alumnae of Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana, who opposed the liberal arts school’s plan.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 28, 2023

But when Mount Holyoke changed its admissions standards in 2014, many alumnae voiced deep concerns sometimes in a vitriolic and personal way, said Lynn Pasquerella, the president at the time.

From New York Times ● Mar. 14, 2023

Some use the original, foreign plurals: alumnae; alumni; data; media; phenomena.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

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Related Words

• alum
• graduate

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