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.
Though safe from the camera bullies, Patel’s classmate didn’t eat in front of anyone again until this school year.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026
In return, Juin offered his classmate the option of converting parts of the loan into shares of the lingerie business.
From MarketWatch • May 29, 2026
And they learned that Yasser Lopez, a classmate, had been stopped in a car with three friends on the way to a soccer game and taken into custody.
From Slate • Apr. 27, 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
“I’m never going to understand this,” my classmate cried in despair.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
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.
