grad
noun
a graduate.
grad
1 American
[grad]
/ græd /
noun
Informal.
grad
2
American
[grad]
/ græd /
noun
grad.
3
American
abbreviation
-
Mathematics. gradient.
-
graduate.
-
graduated.
grad.
1
British
abbreviation
-
maths gradient
-
education graduate(d)
grad
2
British
/ ɡræd /
noun
Etymology
Origin of grad1
First recorded in 1870–75; by shortening
Origin of grad2
1905–10; < French grade degree < Latin gradus step
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:
Kratima Divakar, a 26-year-old lawyer from India, started attending during her first semester as a grad student.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Geoffrey Supran, a climate disinformation expert at the University of Miami, says that the paper was “mandatory reading” when he was a grad student at MIT.
From Salon ● Jun. 26, 2026
Now, a Texas judge — Texas Tech grad, no less — has granted an injunction allowing him to play anyway.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026
Back in grad school, I imagined that maybe I’d write a bestselling novel, and maybe it would be adapted for the screen, and maybe my tombstone would read: She contributed very serious literature to civilization.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2026
Most of my friends were in grad school or had found great jobs already, working at prestigious firms like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
“He comes from Georgetown. I’m a Georgetown grad. All they talk about it is head, heart, soul, mind and full-person development.”
From Washington Post ● Jul. 23, 2019
“One of the most staunch conservative guys was an Alabama grad. He was talking football with him, smacking right back.”
From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2019
He was a Princeton grad. and had gained quite some little fame as a member of the Tiger nine that swept Yale off its feet one great year.
From The Chums of Scranton High out for the Pennant by Ferguson, Donald
I know, but I'm coming back for a post grad. course in"—Molly hesitated, she hardly knew why—"in English and—and a few other things.
From Molly Brown's Senior Days by Wrenn, Charles L. (Charles Lewis)
Everybody, from the youngest prep. to the oldest grad., will know it and love it.
From An American at Oxford by Corbin, John
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.
