dorm
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dorm
First recorded in 1895–1900; by shortening
Explanation
A dorm — short for dormitory — is a place where college or university students live. You'll find a lot of bunk beds in most dorms. If you go away to college, you’ll probably live in a dormitory — or dorm. It's much more common for students to say dorm because it's shorter and slangier. A dorm is where students live, often with roommates. Dorms have laundry rooms and rec rooms, and it's a place where many friendships are made. Students often study or try to avoid studying in the dorm. It's their home away from home. Dorms are also called residence halls and student residences.
Vocabulary lists containing dorm
Vocabulary from Readings, Unit 2
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Vocabulary from Readings, Unit 2
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Road Home
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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.
Although Celenza hopes to continue spreading the message that eating healthy and high quality doesn’t have to come with a huge price tag, the struggle was never only about being broke in a dorm kitchen.
From Salon • Jul. 2, 2026
Some schools in the U.S. still have a few days left before summer vacation, but that isn’t stopping Walmart from touting deals on back-to-school dorm furniture and electronics.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 21, 2026
In the very first “Doonesbury” comic strip, a young man wearing a football helmet sits in a dorm, waiting to meet his new roommate.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 19, 2026
His savings had run out, his father had stopped financially supporting his tuition, and in his final days on campus, he was suspended for bringing a woman to his dorm room, according to his memoir.
From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026
At Oberlin College in Ohio, a young woman watched the people in her dorm become unglued as they listened to the program.
From "Spooked!" by Gail Jarrow
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.
