emeritus

American  

[ih-mer-i-tuhs] / ɪˈmɛr ɪ təs /

adjective

1. retired or honorably discharged from active professional duty, but retaining the title of one's office or position.

   dean emeritus of the graduate school;

   editor in chief emeritus.

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noun

emeriti plural

1. an emeritus professor, minister, etc.

emeritus British  

/ ɪˈmɛrɪtəs /

adjective

1. (usually postpositive) retired or honourably discharged from full-time work, but retaining one's title on an honorary basis

   a professor emeritus

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Usage

What does emeritus mean? Emeritus describes someone who has retired or been honorably discharged from a specific position but allowed to retain their title because of their high achievements. For example, a distinguished professor at a university may be awarded with the title professor emeritus upon their retirement. An emeritus is a person who has retired and has been awarded the title, as Today’s guest speaker is an emeritus from Harvard. Emeritus comes from Latin, so the word has a feminine form—emerita. However, the feminine form is rarely used. Emeritus is commonly considered gender neutral. The plural form of emeritus is emeriti, so a group of retired professors may be referred to as professors emeriti. You may also notice that when used as an adjective, the word is placed after the noun. The title emeritus was first used in academia to describe professors who were retired from their position (professor emeritus). The word is now used for other positions, such as dean emeritus or president emeritus. Emeritus is also used in other professions. For example, it can be used to describe retired religious leaders like rabbis (rabbi emeritus) or bishops (bishop emeritus), as well as certain government positions. Example: Upon her retirement, Lucinda was awarded the title of professor emeritus for her outstanding work in the field.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• emeriti
  plural

Etymology

Origin of emeritus

First recorded in 1785–95; from Latin ēmeritus “fully earned,” past participle of ēmerēre “to fully earn,” from ē- e- ¹ + merēre “to earn”; cf. merit

Compare meaning

How does emeritus compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• emerita vs. emeritus

Explanation

An emeritus is a retired college professor or minister. When a professor stops teaching, she might be given the title of emeritus, which basically means she can still be remembered as a successful professor. The word emeritus, pronounced "eh-MER-ih-tus," is Latin, originally meaning "veteran soldier." The honorary adjective is most often used with professor, but it applies to other professions whose retirees continue to hold their title, like ministers. The word emeritus usually goes after the job title, but it can also come before, like emeritus editor.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

emeritus emeriti

Bonds in 2022 suffered their worst bear market since 1793, according to the database maintained by Edward McQuarrie, an emeritus professor at Santa Clara University.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026

The board then voted unanimously to grant him the emeritus title and gave him a standing ovation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026

"If a condition isn't recognised as medical, it delays appropriate treatment," Christopher French, a psychologist and emeritus professor at the University of London, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026

That is the question posed in “Speed,” a marvelously encyclopedic book by Vaclav Smil, an environmental scientist and professor emeritus at the University of Manitoba.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

Dear Doctor June, pastor emeritus of Friendship, since he was so identified with all the village interests that not many could tell from what church he had retired.

From Friendship Village by Gale, Zona

Since 2004, the Ballards, both professors emeriti of pediatrics at UC San Francisco, have been piecing together ways to restore the creek, one small project at a time.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2025

The five additional honorary Cardinals — Archbishops and bishops emeriti, who are over the age of 80 and therefore unable to vote in papal elections — are:

From Time ● Jan. 4, 2015

On the subject of papal retirement, Pope Francis said his immediate predecessor, Pope Benedict, had “opened a door, the door of pope emeriti; only God knows if there will be others.”

From New York Times ● May 27, 2014

A relatively low-profile member of the Kennedy family, she served on the advisory board of the National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and was also a director emeriti of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.

From Reuters ● Sep. 17, 2011

Baseball's commissioner loves to kid Milwaukee reporters about their perceived infatuation with the , but he long has been on the Packers' board, currently listed as a director emeriti on the team's masthead.

From Chicago Tribune ● Feb. 5, 2011

Related Words

• discharged
• retiring