exam
noun
an examination, as in school.
exam
1 American
[ig-zam]
/ ɪgˈzæm /
noun
Informal.
-
exams
plural
exam.
2
American
abbreviation
-
examination.
-
examined.
-
examinee.
-
examiner.
exam
British
/ ɪɡˈzæm /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of exam
First recorded in 1875–80; short form
Explanation
An exam is a test. Many high school and college classes have a midterm exam and a final exam. The word exam is short for examination, from 19th century student slang. An exam usually takes place in a class and consists of questions that test a student's knowledge. Sometimes the word describes a medical test of some kind, like an eye exam, a dental exam, or a physical exam. Rather than testing knowledge or skill, these exams are procedures meant to diagnose or rule out illnesses.
Vocabulary lists containing exam
Education and Academics, List 2
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Unit 18, Lesson 4
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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.
See Examples For:
For the next three years, he studied hours a day for the exam that would whittle down the applicants.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
In April, after another cramped train ride, he slept at the station the night before a six-hour exam.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
After talks with protesters on Sunday, the government agreed to cancel the exam in question, along with two others.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
The CJP has said it will organise a "nationwide listening tour" to hear the concerns of young Indians, while continuing to back protests over exam irregularities.
From Barron's ● Aug. 8, 2026
I wanted to stay home, but I had my first exam paper.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
"You are the one who has to go and take the exam. I am here to prepare everything for you but ultimately it is you who has to go there," she told him.
From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026
“By 2023, it could pass the bar exam. By 2024, it could write working software and explain graduate-level science.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
“This lawsuit is an attempt by the State Bar to shift the blame for its flawed development process for the February exam. We will defend ourselves vigorously in court.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2025
"I'm treating this as a journey. If I can help people get a breast exam, a colonoscopy, or a prostate exam. Go do it because, for me, early detection meant everything," he urged.
From Salon ● Nov. 14, 2024
“Flitwick told me in secret that I got a hundred and twelve percent on his exam. 'They’re not throwing me out after that.”
From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling
Faced with the decision of whether to continue her final year, or postpone her exams and restart the year completely following her rehabilitation, Hunt powered on to avoid her final year clashing with the Olympics.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Saturday his government would provide free online coaching lessons for competitive exams, weeks after massive youth-led protests forced the education minister to resign.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
The protests have focused on allegations of cheating and corruption in the fiercely competitive exams for government jobs and university places that are a key pathway for upward mobility in India.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
It may also be possible to re-sit some or all of your exams.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Before long she was delivering so many babies that Audrey and I spent our days driving around the valley with her, watching her conduct prenatal exams and prescribe herbs.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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.
