preparatory school
Americannoun
-
a private or parochial secondary school, especially one boarding its students and providing a college-preparatory education.
-
British. a private elementary school, especially one preparing its students for public school.
noun
-
(in Britain) a private school, usually single-sex and for children between the ages of 6 and 13, generally preparing pupils for public school
-
(in the US) a private secondary school preparing pupils for college
Etymology
Origin of preparatory school
First recorded in 1815–25
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He played soccer and went to Bishop Denis J. O’Connell High School, a Catholic preparatory school in Arlington.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 9, 2026
Nuria Sajjad, eight, and her mother Smera Chohan had been taking a photograph together at the preparatory school in Wimbledon when they were hit.
From BBC • Nov. 15, 2023
When he boarded the car at the Metro Center station, it was packed with dozens of students, some wearing shirts and backpacks from Landon — a college preparatory school in Bethesda.
From Washington Post • Sep. 6, 2022
The accident occurred Thursday as the Brunswick school, a college preparatory school for boys in Greenwich, played St. Luke’s School, a private co-educational school from New Canaan.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 7, 2022
Brinker looked the standard preparatory school article in his gray gabardine suit with square, hand-sewn-looking jacket pockets, a conservative necktie, and dark brown cordovan shoes.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
