intern

¹ American  

[in-turn] / ˈɪn tɜrn /

Sometimes interne

noun

1. a resident member of the medical staff of a hospital, usually a recent medical school graduate serving under supervision.

2. Education. student teacher.

3. a person who works as an apprentice or trainee in an occupation or profession to gain practical experience, and sometimes also to satisfy legal or other requirements for being licensed or accepted professionally.

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verb (used without object)

interned, interning

1. to be or perform the duties of an intern.

intern ² American  

[in-turn, in-turn] / ɪnˈtɜrn, ˈɪn tɜrn /

verb (used with object)

1. to restrict to or confine within prescribed limits, as prisoners of war, enemy aliens, or combat troops who take refuge in a neutral country.

2. to impound or hold within a country until the termination of a war, as a ship of a belligerent that has put into a neutral port and remained beyond a limited period.

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noun

1. a person who is or has been interned; internee.

intern ³ American  

[in-turn] / ɪnˈtɜrn /

adjective

Archaic.

1. internal.

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intern British  

verb

1. (tr) to detain or confine (foreign or enemy citizens, ships, etc), esp during wartime

2. (intr) to serve or train as an intern

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noun

1. another word for internee

2. Also: interne.  British equivalent: house officer.  med a graduate in the first year of practical training after medical school, resident in a hospital and under supervision by senior doctors

3. a student teacher

4. a student or recent graduate receiving practical training in a working environment

adjective

1. an archaic word for internal

Etymology

Origin of intern¹

First recorded in 1825–30 intern ¹ for def. 1, and in 1920–25 intern ¹ for defs. 2, 3; from French interne “assistant doctor,” from Latin internus “inward”; intern ³

Origin of intern²

First recorded in 1865–70; from French interner “to send inland; confine,” verbal derivative of interne intern ³

Origin of intern³

First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin internus “inward,” equivalent to inter- inter- + -nus adjective suffix

Explanation

Somewhere between being a student and a professional is the life of an intern, an advanced student, especially in medicine, who gets on-the-job experience. To intern or be an intern is to leave the classroom behind and start doing part of your profession — usually, the job of being a doctor. Sometimes an intern is paid, but not always, and the pay is never great. The experience is considered payment in itself. There have been many medical TV shows that feature interns, probably because the hours are long, the job is difficult, and there are many opportunities for drama in this boot camp for doctors. Medical interns may appreciate another meaning, which means to take away someone's freedom, as in "Why did you intern the prisoners?"

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

intern interned interning

For example, if you wanted to use AI to share your general job experience with a new intern, today’s AI would be of limited use.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

"I'm still in my training period, so I'm feeling a little nervous," the self-described "intern" said in an earnest female voice, explaining how the school provided tailored courses and certification for specific robot jobs.

From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026

BBC Sport also understands that the intern involved, Will Salt, is set to be appointed to a permanent analyst role with the club since the controversy.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

Aaron Huestis, a field operations manager at University Hospitals in the Cleveland area, recently promoted an intern to a full-time position.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

The jaunty intern made a quick and careful examination.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith

He grew up in the Bay Area and, after an early career stint reporting on the videogame industry, interned at his hometown paper, Palo Alto Weekly.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

Mitchell’s familiarity with lobbying might also come from experience, with Mitchell having interned at a lobbying firm, according to both Radio Iowa and his biography at Future Caucus, a group that supports young politicians.

From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2026

She previously interned at the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, covering markets and corporate news.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026

Estrada interned at EdSource and focused on film criticism at MXDWN, online entertainment magazine.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2026

Even though they were interned, the Japanese created a community in the camp, so Mas was able to bring everything Jeanne had written to life.

From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers

Brennan Drolet, a rising college senior studying finance, is spending this summer interning at a bank in Massachusetts.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026

Mendoza, a business student, spent his summers interning at commercial real estate and investing firms.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026

Concannon is interning this semester at the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office and is set to graduate this spring.

From Slate ● Apr. 6, 2026

A decade later, in 1998, Whitten and Sykes — who at the time was interning for him — were in his home workroom when the phone rang.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2025

The New York Times reports that they now prefer career-relevant activities like summer school or interning in an appropriate professional setting to the “sweaty, low-paid and mind-numbing slots that have long been their lot.”

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

Related Words

• doctor
• resident
• student
• trainee