college

American  

[kol-ij] / ˈkɒl ɪdʒ /

noun

• colleges
  plural

1. an institution of higher learning, especially one providing a general or liberal arts education rather than technical or professional training.

2. a constituent unit of a university, furnishing courses of instruction in the liberal arts and sciences, usually leading to a bachelor's degree.

3. an institution for vocational, technical, or professional instruction, as in medicine, pharmacy, agriculture, or music, often a part of a university.

4. an endowed, self-governing association of scholars incorporated within a university, as at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge in England.

5. a similar corporation outside a university.

6. the building or buildings occupied by an institution of higher education.

7. the administrators, faculty, and students of a college.

8. (in Britain and Canada) a private secondary school.

9. an organized association of persons having certain powers and rights, and performing certain duties or engaged in a particular pursuit.

   The Electoral College formally selects the president.

10. a company; assemblage.

11. Also called collegium.  a body of clergy living together on a foundation for religious service or similar activity.

12. British Slang. a prison.

---

college British  

/ ˈkɒlɪdʒ /

noun

1. an institution of higher education; part of a university

2. a school or an institution providing specialized courses or teaching

   a college of music

3. the building or buildings in which a college is housed

4. the staff and students of a college

5. an organized body of persons with specific rights and duties See also Sacred College

   an electoral college

6. a body of clerics living in community and supported by endowment

7. an obsolete slang word for prison

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• postcollege
  noun
• precollege
  noun
• subcollege
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• colleges
  plural

Etymology

Origin of college

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Middle French, from Latin collēgium, from col- col- ¹ + lēg-, variant stem of legere “to choose, gather, read” + -ium -ium; cf. colleague

Explanation

In the US, people pursuing education after high school go to college––spending either two or four years earning an associate's degree or a bachelor's degree. Many colleges are housed within universities. College derives from the Latin collegium 'partnership, association.' While a university offers many programs leading to graduate degrees beyond a bachelor's degree, a college is undergraduate only. So if you want to pursue becoming a lawyer, a doctor, or a college professor, chances are college is just a weigh station on your route to graduate school.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

college colleges

Linton’s older sister lives in Philadelphia and her niece attends college in Hawaii, so that would have been impossible, Blacknell said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Ruth was part of the group and head of college admissions at my high school.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

I was a sophomore in college who’d written a handful of things maybe worth reading, but Marsh treated me like a peer and a colleague.

From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026

Stiles has said that attending college offered her a way to step away from the intense attention that accompanied her early fame.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026

That made Dr. Claytor the first PhD—White or Colored—to teach math at any college in the state.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson

Local colleges had also seen a rise in demand.

From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026

Hundreds of colleges are sending students letters of admission—without even requiring an application.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026

Losing it could exacerbate financial struggles that have already caused some colleges to cut programs, lay off staff, and even close.

From Slate ● Sep. 3, 2026

The Treasury Department and IRS estimate that up to 18,000 private schools, colleges and other education institutions nationwide could be affected by the proposal.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026

He may be a terrible driver, but I can’t deny that he’s a brain—a very, very big brain—which is why he’s been getting invitations to apply to colleges for years.

From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina