elementary school
Americannoun
noun
-
a former name for primary school
-
Also called (in the US): grade school. grammar school. a state school in which instruction is given for the first six to eight years of a child's education
Etymology
Origin of elementary school
First recorded in 1835–45
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.
As an advocate for the local library told me, by the next day, all the children at the local elementary school had heard about Gamble.
From Slate • May 4, 2026
Stress increases cortisol levels, which in turn drives cravings for quick, energy-dense foods — carbs, sugar, the kinds of things that dominate elementary school diets.
From Salon • Apr. 25, 2026
In Miami Beach, tech entrepreneur John Marshall built an elementary school that is expanding into a middle and soon a high school, called BaseCamp305, that he says instills an entrepreneurial spirit.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026
The day after Neukgu's disappearance, authorities received dozens of reported sightings, including some boys who cried wolf: elementary school kids who had mistaken dogs for Neukgu, the Chosun Daily reported.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026
In the complex math of elementary school, I was a whole number, not a fraction.
From "Wintergirls" by Laurie Halse Anderson
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.
