public school

American  

noun

• public schools
  plural

1. (in the U.S.) a school that is maintained at public expense for the education of the children of a community or district and that constitutes a part of a system of free public education commonly including primary and secondary schools.

2. (in England) any of a number of endowed secondary boarding schools that prepare students chiefly for the universities or for public service.

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public school British  

noun

1. (in England and Wales) a private independent fee-paying secondary school

2. (in the US) any school that is part of a free local educational system

3. in certin Canadian provinces, a public elementray school as distinguished from a separate school

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• public-school
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• public schools
  plural

Etymology

Origin of public school

First recorded in 1570–80

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

public school

Let’s go back in time to the day when parents sent all their children to the same neighborhood public school, one brother after another, one sister after another.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

His fondness dates back at least to seventh grade, when he says he was recruited to learn Russian in his Maryland public school.

From Salon ● Sep. 16, 2026

Fine, who lives in Manhattan Beach, declined to be interviewed last week before the Cubs’ game against the public school he lives five minutes from, Mira Costa.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

Imagine a grade-school parent who has a child zoned for a failing, unsafe public school.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026

The Warden found a job teaching at a public school and worked a second job helping mentally impaired adults.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French