graduated

[ graj-oo-ey-tid ]

/ ˈgrædʒ uˌeɪ tɪd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR graduated ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

characterized by or arranged in degrees, especially successively, as according to height, depth, or difficulty: a graduated series of lessons.

marked with divisions or units of measurement.

(of a bird's tail) having the longest feathers in the center, the others being successively shorter.

(of a tax) increasing along with the taxable base: a graduated income tax.

Nearby words

gradually, graduand, graduate, graduate nurse, graduate school, graduated, graduated cylinder, graduated tenotomy, graduation, gradus, gradus ad parnassum

Origin of graduated

First recorded in 1645–55; graduate + -ed²

Related formsnon·grad·u·at·ed, adjectiveo·ver·grad·u·at·ed, adjectiveun·grad·u·at·ed, adjective

Definition for graduated (2 of 2)

graduate

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

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

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.

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

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

Usage note

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.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for graduated

Dean Todd remained my friend until I graduated in 1988, with my degree in English literature.
I Was Gang Raped at a UVA Frat 30 Years Ago, and No One Did Anything|Liz Seccuro|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I had graduated NYU just a few years earlier and begun a career in publishing, but the addiction got the best of me.
A Million Ways to Die in Prison|Daniel Genis|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After he graduated high school, Stasio enrolled at the University at Buffalo and entered the ROTC program.
How the NSA Became a Killing Machine|Shane Harris|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Once he graduated in 2006, Simien took a job as a publicity assistant at Rogue, then a division of Focus Features.
‘Dear White People’: How An Ex-Publicist’s Twitter Became One of the Year’s Most Important Films|Marlow Stern|October 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST

I graduated from drama school 16 years ago, so it has taken a while.
David Oyelowo on Playing Martin Luther King Jr., Ebola Fears, and Race in Hollywood|Marlow Stern|October 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If Shakespeare had graduated at Oxford, he might have been a quibbling attorney, or a hypocritical parson.
The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 3 (of 12)|Robert G. Ingersoll
It is likewise provided with a graduated equatorial circle, with polar circles and those representing the tropics.
Terrestrial and Celestial Globes Vol I|Edward Luther Stevenson
His college, Mr. Lidgerwood; do you chance to know where he was graduated?
The Taming of Red Butte Western|Francis Lynde
In the preceding argument for universal but graduated suffrage, I have taken no account of difference of sex.
Considerations on Representative Government|John Stuart Mill
When I first graduated in medicine, I could answer any question in medicine.
Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the|Various

British Dictionary definitions for graduated

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 Formsgraduator, 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

Word Origin and History for graduated (1 of 2)

graduate

early 15c., "to confer a university degree upon," from Medieval Latin graduatus (see graduate (n.)). Intransitive sense from 1807. Related: Graduated; graduating.

Word Origin and History for graduated (1 of 2)

graduate

early 15c., "one who holds a degree" (with man; as a stand-alone noun from mid-15c.), from Medieval Latin graduatus, past participle of graduari "to take a degree," from Latin gradus "step, grade" (see grade). As an adjective, from late 15c.

Medicine definitions for graduated

graduated

[ grăj′ōō-ā′tĭd ]

adj.

Marked with or divided into intervals, as of volume or temperature, for use in measurement.

Science definitions for graduated

graduated

[ grăj′ōō-ā′tĭd ]

Divided into or marked with intervals indicating measures, as of length, volume, or temperature.

graduated

adjective

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Nearby words

Origin of graduated

Definition for graduated (2 of 2)

graduate

noun

adjective

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

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

Origin of graduate

Usage note

Examples from the Web for graduated

British Dictionary definitions for graduated

graduate

noun (ˈɡrædjʊɪt)

verb (ˈɡrædjʊˌeɪt)

Word Origin for graduate

Word Origin and History for graduated (1 of 2)

graduate

Word Origin and History for graduated (1 of 2)

graduate

Medicine definitions for graduated

graduated

adj.

Science definitions for graduated

graduated