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.

---

alumnus British  

/ əˈlʌmnəs /

noun

1. a graduate of a school, college, etc

---

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.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• alumni
  plural

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

See Examples For:

alumnus alumni

“It will be a time for Brett to expand his skill set,” said Brian Adams, another BLS alumnus who once supervised him.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

An alumnus stomped down the road in his blazer to St John’s to retrieve the plate.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

She and her husband, Paul Pelosi — a Georgetown alumnus — established the Paul F. Pelosi Scholars Initiative at Georgetown’s Walsh School of Foreign Service in 2018, which supports students pursuing public service careers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026

As “Love Island” alumnus Rob Rausch frequently reminded us and himself, whatever deceptions he committed were all part of playing a game.

From Salon ● Jun. 20, 2026

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

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Crabb: I always try to go down there for alumni events or any big games they have.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026

He went to Whitchurch High School in Cardiff, whose alumni include some of Wales' best known sporting heroes.

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026

The Royals prevailed 28-23, and the following week knocked off Orlando’s Edgewater High, a public stronghold with NFL alumni.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

The academy counts former NBA players Ricky Rubio, Rudy Fernández and Raül López among its alumni.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026

From their rooms, the boys watched Princeton alumni stroll around the golf course wearing their knickerbockers, high argyle socks, and tweed caps.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

• alum
• graduate