college

American  

[kol-ij] / ˈkɒl ɪdʒ /

noun

• colleges
  plural

1. an institution of higher learning, especially one providing a general or liberal arts education rather than technical or professional training.

2. a constituent unit of a university, furnishing courses of instruction in the liberal arts and sciences, usually leading to a bachelor's degree.

3. an institution for vocational, technical, or professional instruction, as in medicine, pharmacy, agriculture, or music, often a part of a university.

4. an endowed, self-governing association of scholars incorporated within a university, as at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge in England.

5. a similar corporation outside a university.

6. the building or buildings occupied by an institution of higher education.

7. the administrators, faculty, and students of a college.

8. (in Britain and Canada) a private secondary school.

9. an organized association of persons having certain powers and rights, and performing certain duties or engaged in a particular pursuit.

   The Electoral College formally selects the president.

10. a company; assemblage.

11. Also called collegium.  a body of clergy living together on a foundation for religious service or similar activity.

12. British Slang. a prison.

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college British  

/ ˈkɒlɪdʒ /

noun

1. an institution of higher education; part of a university

2. a school or an institution providing specialized courses or teaching

   a college of music

3. the building or buildings in which a college is housed

4. the staff and students of a college

5. an organized body of persons with specific rights and duties See also Sacred College

   an electoral college

6. a body of clerics living in community and supported by endowment

7. an obsolete slang word for prison

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• postcollege
  noun
• precollege
  noun
• subcollege
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• colleges
  plural

Etymology

Origin of college

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Middle French, from Latin collēgium, from col- col- ¹ + lēg-, variant stem of legere “to choose, gather, read” + -ium -ium; cf. colleague

Explanation

In the US, people pursuing education after high school go to college––spending either two or four years earning an associate's degree or a bachelor's degree. Many colleges are housed within universities. College derives from the Latin collegium 'partnership, association.' While a university offers many programs leading to graduate degrees beyond a bachelor's degree, a college is undergraduate only. So if you want to pursue becoming a lawyer, a doctor, or a college professor, chances are college is just a weigh station on your route to graduate school.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

college colleges

As vast sums of NIL money flood the college game to rival rookie professional contracts, today’s best college players no longer need to choose between settling unfinished business and cashing in with pro-level salaries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

A study looking at adherence to the Mediterranean diet among U.S. college students found that those with more financial security were better able to follow the Mediterranean diet than those with more financial constraints.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 16, 2026

The LSU graduate wanted to play indoor volleyball in college, but she couldn’t because of injuries and instead joined the beach volleyball team.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

How he feels about college now: Its biggest value is the exposure to a variety of bright minds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

“I wouldn’t have made it through my first year of college without her. Never mind graduate school,” he says.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

Of the school’s 10 residential colleges, she was part of the John R. Lewis College community, which focuses on themes of social justice.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

Such institutions were created to provide higher education to disenfranchised African Americans, who were otherwise prohibited from attending most colleges.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

They also highlighted immense pressures on students in India, the world's most populous nation where admission to government-run colleges remains one of the most sought-after pathways to economic security.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

By the early 2000s, colleges faced an “amenities arms race.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

In addition to celebrating the year's graduates, the school, like many colleges, recognizes special people by awarding them with honorary doctorates.

From "Women in Space" by Karen Bush Gibson