graduate

[ noun, adjective graj-oo-it, -eyt; verb graj-oo-eyt ]

/ noun, adjective ˈgrædʒ u ɪt, -ˌeɪt; verb ˈgrædʒ uˌeɪt /

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See synonyms for: graduate / graduated / graduating on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person who has received a degree or diploma on completing a course of study, as in a university, college, or school.

a student who holds the bachelor's or the first professional degree and is studying for an advanced degree.

a graduated cylinder, used for measuring.

adjective

of, relating to, or involved in academic study beyond the first or bachelor's degree: graduate courses in business; a graduate student.

having an academic degree or diploma: a graduate engineer.

verb (used without object), grad·u·at·ed, grad·u·at·ing.

to receive a degree or diploma on completing a course of study (often followed by from): She graduated from college in 1985.

to pass by degrees; change gradually.

verb (used with object), grad·u·at·ed, grad·u·at·ing.

to confer a degree upon, or to grant a diploma to, at the close of a course of study, as in a university, college, or school: Cornell graduated eighty students with honors.

Informal. to receive a degree or diploma from: She graduated college in 1950.

to arrange in grades or gradations; establish gradation in.

to divide into or mark with degrees or other divisions, as the scale of a thermometer.

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Origin of graduate

1375–1425; late Middle English <Medieval Latin graduātus (past participle of graduāre), equivalent to grad(us) grade, step + -u- thematic vowel + -ātus-ate¹

usage note for graduate

In the sense “to receive a degree or diploma” graduate followed by from is the most common construction today: Her daughter graduated from Yale in 1981. The passive form was graduated from, formerly insisted upon as the only correct pattern, has decreased in use and occurs infrequently today: My husband was graduated from West Point last year.
Even though it is condemned by some as nonstandard, the use of graduate as a transitive verb meaning “to receive a degree or diploma from” is increasing in frequency in both speech and writing: The twins graduated high school in 1974.

OTHER WORDS FROM graduate

grad·u·a·tor, nounnon·grad·u·ate, nounsu·per·grad·u·ate, nounun·grad·u·at·ing, adjective

Words nearby graduate

gradiometer, gradual, gradualism, gradually, graduand, graduate, graduated, graduated cylinder, graduate nurse, graduate school, graduation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use graduate in a sentence

Jiménez said she moved to Tijuana around 12 years ago after she graduated from high school.
Tijuana authorities criticized over handling of transgender woman’s murder|Michael K. Lavers|September 17, 2020|Washington Blade
Finally, Ken Wilson — a former graduate student of Gell-Mann with feet in the worlds of both particle physics and condensed matter — united the ideas of Gell-Mann and Low with those of Kadanoff.
How Mathematical ‘Hocus-Pocus’ Saved Particle Physics|Charlie Wood|September 17, 2020|Quanta Magazine
Of the 180 graduates of the program, 172 are still actively pursuing their businesses as of last year.
Cincinnati’s Secret Sauce to Help Minority Businesses Succeed|Nick Fouriezos|September 15, 2020|Ozy
They’ve now graduated to a different school that predates the Mussolini years.
A flurry of M&A deals lifts global stocks. Yes, even tech stocks|Bernhard Warner|September 14, 2020|Fortune

About six years ago, food microbiologist David Mills of the University of California, Davis and graduate student Nicholas Bokulich, now a food microbiologist at ETH Zurich, discovered that groups of microbes may help shape the flavor of wine.
How does a crop’s environment shape a food’s smell and taste?|Carolyn Beans|September 10, 2020|Science News
HONG KONG—Last year, I met a Chinese graduate student on a tour of the northeastern United States before his first day at Harvard.
China’s Internet Is Freer Than You Think|Brendon Hong|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The whys the wherefores, I think a lot of that is somehow a link from decoding texts, as they say in graduate school.
Daphne Merkin on Lena Dunham, Book Criticism, and Self-Examination|Mindy Farabee|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Many times, victims drop out of school, while their alleged attackers graduate.
Jameis Winston Cleared of Rape Like Every Other College Sports Star|Robert Silverman|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Girma is a 26-year-old Harvard Law School graduate—and she is blind and deaf.
TEDx Talks Have a Disability Problem—but This Incredible Young Woman Is Working to Change That|Nina Strochlic|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On-time graduation (10%): Percentage of students who graduate within four years (NCES).
The Daily Beast College Rankings Methodology|Brandy Zadrozny|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She was a graduate, and probably knew nothing of what he thought essential for a teacher to know.
The Cromptons|Mary J. Holmes
The faithful Wolff too, as a graduate of a German university, had been a fighter of duels in his youth.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume II (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Mr. Garnett is a graduate of Oneida Institute, a speaker of great pathetic eloquence, and has written several valuable pamphlets.
The Condition, Elevation, Emigration, and Destiny of the Colored People of the United States|Martin R. Delany
Then graduate the shades back again to white, narrowing the first row of white with the larger mesh.
The Ladies' Book of Etiquette, and Manual of Politeness|Florence Hartley
We have also established post-graduate courses, in the hope of inducing our young men to complete their studies at home.
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science|Various

British Dictionary definitions for graduate

graduate

noun (ˈɡrædjʊɪt)

a person who has been awarded a first degree from a university or college
(as modifier)a graduate profession

US and Canadian a student who has completed a course of studies at a high school and received a diploma

US a container, such as a flask, marked to indicate its capacity

verb (ˈɡrædjʊˌeɪt)

to receive or cause to receive a degree or diploma

(tr) mainly US and Canadian to confer a degree, diploma, etc upon

(tr) to mark (a thermometer, flask, etc) with units of measurement; calibrate

(tr) to arrange or sort into groups according to type, quality, etc

(intr often foll by to) to change by degrees (from something to something else)

Derived forms of graduate

graduator, noun

Word Origin for graduate

C15: from Medieval Latin graduārī to take a degree, from Latin gradus a step

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

graduate

Origin of graduate

usage note for graduate

OTHER WORDS FROM graduate

Words nearby graduate

Words related to graduate

How to use graduate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for graduate

Derived forms of graduate

Word Origin for graduate