alumnus

American  

[uh-luhm-nuhs] / əˈlʌm nəs /

noun

alumni plural

1. a graduate or former student of a specific school, college, or university, especially a man.

   As an alumnus of this university myself, I am proud to dedicate its new building.

2. a former associate, employee, member, or the like.

   He invited all the alumni of the library staff to the party.

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alumnus British  

/ əˈlʌmnəs /

noun

1. a graduate of a school, college, etc

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Usage

What’s the difference between alumnus and alumni? An alumnus is a graduate of a school, such as a high school or university. The plural of alumnus is alumni (which follows the plural ending construction used in other Latin-derived words, like stimulus and stimuli). In Latin, alumnus specifically refers to a male graduate, and sometimes this distinction is carried into English, with alumna being used to refer to a female graduate. The plural of alumna is alumnae. Still, alumnus and alumni are both commonly used in a gender-neutral way. 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 alumnus and alumni used correctly in the same sentence. Example: As an alumnus, you share something with all of the alumni, regardless of when each of you graduated. Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between alumnus and alumni.

Gender

Alumnus (in Latin a masculine noun) usually refers to a male graduate or former student; the plural is alumni. An alumna (in Latin a feminine noun) refers to a female graduate or former student; the plural is alumnae. Traditionally, the masculine plural alumni has been used for mixed gender groups and is still widely so used: the alumni of Indiana University. Sometimes, to avoid any suggestion of sexism, both terms are used for mixed groups: the alumni/alumnae of Indiana University or the alumni and alumnae of Indiana University. Some people use the less formal abbreviation alum and its plural alums to avoid the complexities of the Latin forms and their unfamiliar gender inflection. Others use the terms graduate and graduates, though they are not quite equivalent in meaning, to eliminate the use of a masculine plural form to refer to all genders.

Etymology

Origin of alumnus

First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin: “foster son, pupil,” equivalent to al- (stem of alere “to suckle, feed, support”) + -u- (from stem-vowel *-o- in interior syllable) + -m(i)nus, originally passive participial suffix, akin to Greek -menos; cf. adult ( def. ), alimony

Explanation

An alumnus is a graduate of a school. You can be an alumnus of a high school, college or university. Want to be an alumnus? Then you'd better study hard and graduate: an alumnus has received a diploma or degree from a school. You've probably heard of some famous or successful alumni (the plural of alumnus from your own school: schools tend to be proud of students who have gone on to do well. Schools also like to ask each alumnus (famous or not) to give back to the school — usually monetarily.

Example Sentences

"The new finds of Homo teeth from 2.6 -- 2.8 million year old sediments -- reported in this paper -- confirms the antiquity of our lineage," said Brian Villmoare, lead author and ASU alumnus.

From Science Daily • May 16, 2026

For Stevens, who is a trustee and an alumnus, the gift marks a major addition on top of his years-long support for USC.

From Los Angeles Times • May 5, 2026

The group includes former Cerberus Managing Director John Gallagher and a deal team called the Economic Defense Unit led by Cerberus alumnus George Kollitides.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

Father Enzo Del Brocco, president of the Catholic Theological Union, of which Leo is an alumnus, said that the two men see the world in “fundamentally different ways.”

From Salon • Apr. 14, 2026

I borrowed academic dress from Randall Peteni, a friend and fellow alumnus.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Related Words

• alum
• graduate