freshman
Americannoun
plural
freshmen-
a student in the first year of the course at a university, college, or high school.
-
a novice; beginner.
adjective
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of a freshman.
to outgrow one's freshman attitudes.
-
lacking seniority or experience; junior.
a freshman senator.
-
required of or suitable for freshmen.
freshman courses.
-
initial; first.
This is my freshman year with the company.
Gender
See -man.
Other Word Forms
- freshmanship noun
- prefreshman noun
- subfreshman noun
Etymology
Origin of freshman
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.
“I don’t think you necessarily need college anymore,” said Shraman Kar, 19, who left Stanford after completing his freshman year last spring, then raised $4.5 million for his AI video startup Golpo.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026
Castellano and his co-founder, Nebiyu Demie, who met working campus jobs as freshman computer science students, moved out of the dorms and straight into an apartment complex owned by their investors, Cambridge-based Link Ventures.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026
My daughter got into trouble with credit cards as a freshman.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 30, 2026
Randall showed up as a 6-foot freshman and played junior varsity.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026
The biggest trophy in there is for the science fair project he did in his freshman year.
From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina
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.
