baccalaureate
[bak-uh-lawr-ee-it, -lor-]
noun
a religious service held at an educational institution, usually on the Sunday before commencement day.
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sort, status, strength, level, grade, point, standard, credit, magnitude, qualification, position, scope, honor, quality, class, recipient, doctor, grad, alum, alumnus
Nearby words
- bacalao,
- bacall,
- bacardi,
- bacca,
- baccae,
- baccalaureate sermon,
- baccalauréat,
- baccarat,
- baccate,
- bacchae
Origin of baccalaureate
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for baccalaureate
baccalaureate
noun
Word Origin for baccalaureate
C17: from Medieval Latin baccalaureātus, from baccalaureus advanced student, alteration of baccalārius bachelor; influenced in folk etymology by Latin bāca berry + laureus laurel
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
baccalaureate
1620s, "university degree of a bachelor," from Medieval Latin baccalaureatus, from baccalaureus "student with the first degree," altered by a play on words with bacca lauri "laurel berry" (laurels being awarded for academic success).
The Medieval Latin word perhaps ultimately is derived from Latin baculum "staff" (see bacillus), which the young student might carry, but it is more likely just a re-Latinization of bachelor (q.v.) in its academic sense. In modern U.S. usage, the word usually is short for baccalaureate-sermon (1864), a religious farewell address to the graduating class.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper