classmate
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of classmate
Explanation
Your classmate is someone who goes to school with you. It's hard to believe when you first start college that some of your classmates will become your very best friends. Your school friends are your classmates, and so are the fellow students you barely know at all. In a small class, you get to know most of your classmates fairly well, while in a large lecture even your teacher might not know all your classmates' names. The word dates from the 18th century, a combination of class, from the Latin classis, "class or division," and mate, "fellow or comrade."
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.
Ali Nasreddine, a colleague and former classmate, had known Serhan, a father of an eight-year-old girl, for over 30 years.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026
Rather, I’d say scrolling the subreddit is like auditing a university science course where the professor prioritizes discussion, and every classmate is, for once, eager to put their hand in the air.
From Salon • Apr. 12, 2026
Vauhini Vara, is a tech journalist and the 2023 Pulitzer Prize finalist of “The Immortal King Rao,” who spent several years with Mahajan at Stanford as his classmate.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 23, 2026
The show follows three childhood friends whose very different lives converge at a wake for a former classmate in rural Ireland.
From Barron's • Feb. 12, 2026
Nancy smiled when she saw their classmate Deirdre Shannon inside.
From "Case of the Sneaky Snowman: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #5" by Carolyn Keene
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.
