classroom

American  

[klas-room, -room, klahs-] / ˈklæsˌrum, -ˌrʊm, ˈklɑs- /

noun

classrooms plural

1. a room, as in a school or college, in which classes are held.

2. any place where one learns or gains experience.

   The sea is the sailor's classroom.

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classroom British  

/ -ˌrʊm, ˈklɑːsˌruːm /

noun

1. a room in which classes are conducted, esp in a school or college

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Usage

What does classroom mean? A classroom is traditionally a room in a school where a class is taught. The word classroom is commonly used to refer to such a room at every level of education, including elementary school, high school, and college. It can also be used in a more general way to refer to any space where students are being taught by a teacher. Some classrooms might not even be in a room—some schools have outdoor classrooms where students are taught outside, for example. The word is sometimes used in a figurative way to refer to the primary place where someone learns and gains experience outside of a formal educational setting, as in My grandfather didn’t have much formal schooling—the farm was his classroom. Example: I try to set up my classroom to be a space that allows each student to learn in their own way.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• classrooms
  plural

Etymology

Origin of classroom

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70; class + room

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

classroom classrooms

One of Duan's favorite classroom demonstrations helps illustrate the phenomenon.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026

"I don't think they're allowed to send kids out of the classroom," Ashley says.

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026

His goal is to be in a classroom by fall 2027.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 11, 2026

Would he ever set foot in a classroom again, let alone achieve his dream of becoming a doctor?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

We walk down the dimly lit hall past the empty classroom and the choir practice room.

From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko

Labor leaders say new licenses have jumped ninefold in recent years, and court reporting classrooms across the state are full.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026

But it meant that suddenly under-resourced primary schools needed more classrooms, science laboratories, additional teachers with subject specialisations and new learning materials.

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026

Tennessee policymakers required districts to adopt high-quality instructional materials and trained teachers on how to implement evidence-based reading in classrooms.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

It was presented in classrooms at Harvard and MIT and cited more than 3,000 times in scientific papers.

From Salon ● Jun. 26, 2026

The students started to shuffle back to their classrooms.

From "Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story" by Nora Raleigh Baskin