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.

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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

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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

Eric Rath, founder and president of Los Angeles-based Rath Tutoring, a college prep service, said in an interview that the university should preserve the existing baseline, which he described as a threshold system.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026

One of the most prominent spokesmen for Christian nationalism is Doug Wilson, an Idaho pastor and founder of a college and publishing company.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

See also: Employers to college students: never mind that 4.0 GPA.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026

The gymslip - staple no-frills sportswear for girls across much of the 20th century - was even invented at the college by Osterberg's superintendent Mary Tait.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

During the summers after they graduated from college, both attended graduate school elsewhere.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson

There are many excellent colleges where she can continue playing softball.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026

Students who attended for-profit colleges struggle more than others to pay back their loans.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026

Undergraduates can complete bachelor’s degrees in three years if colleges become leaner and more mission-focused.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026

The ability to switch programmes and transfer between universities and colleges will also be restricted.

From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026

The school wasn’t as discriminating as the better-known medical colleges in Boston; the press of acceptances necessitated an expansion.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead