docent
Americannoun
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a college or university lecturer.
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a person who is a knowledgeable guide, especially one who conducts visitors through a museum and delivers a commentary on the exhibitions.
noun
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a voluntary worker who acts as a guide in a museum, art gallery, etc
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(in the US) a lecturer in some colleges or universities
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of docent
1630–40; < German Dozent < Latin docent- (stem of docēns, present participle of docēre ), equivalent to doc- teach + -ent -ent
Explanation
If you’re a docent, you’re a teacher at a college or university. In most countries, you’d rank right below a professor. Docent came into English by way of German, tracing back to the Latin word docere, meaning “teach.” Docent typically refers to someone who teaches at a college or university, but the term can be used more broadly to mean "someone who promotes learning." If you take a museum tour, it might be led by a docent, a volunteer who acts as a guide to the museum’s collection. Pronounce docent with a long “o” sound and a soft “c”: “DOH-sent.”
Vocabulary lists containing docent
Little Fires Everywhere
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Patron Saints of Nothing
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Thunderhead
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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.
You’re not returning each object to its rightful home like a dutiful museum docent.
From Salon • May 5, 2026
I found her nametag from work as a docent in a historical museum.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025
What: 90-minute tours led by a volunteer docent.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 27, 2024
The docent was very informative and entertaining, and we learned a lot in just over an hour.
From Seattle Times • May 26, 2024
The segment opened with a genteel docent standing before a Rembrandt painting and addressing a group of unshaven men dressed in ragged clothing.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
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.
