scholarly

American  

[skol-er-lee] / ˈskɒl ər li /

adjective

1. of, like, or befitting a scholar.

   scholarly habits.

2. having the qualities of a scholar.

   a scholarly person.

3. concerned with academic learning and research.

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adverb

1. like a scholar.

Other Word Forms

• pseudoscholarly
  adjective
• quasi-scholarly
  adjective
• scholarliness
  noun
• superscholarly
  adjective
• unscholarly
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of scholarly

First recorded in 1590–1600; scholar + -ly

Explanation

Someone who's scholarly is a serious student. You can describe your studious friend who's always working on a research paper or reading a huge book as scholarly. Use the adjective scholarly when you talk about a person who is focused on learning — in other words, a scholar. You can also describe things that relate to studying or knowledge as scholarly, like a scholarly article in a journal or a scholarly atmosphere in a library. The Old English word scolere, or "student," is the root of both scholar and scholarly, from the Latin word for school, schola.

Example Sentences

This study was supported by an Undergraduate Research and Scholarly Achievement grant from Baylor University, along with grants from the National Science Foundation and the John Templeton Foundation.

From Science Daily • Jun. 4, 2024

Scholarly, erudite, humorous and humble, the depth of their insight was only eclipsed by their knowledge of the human condition.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 19, 2023

Scholarly literature on the topic, replete with policy proposals, has multiplied since 2009.

From Scientific American • Oct. 11, 2022

Scholarly journal retracts 60 articles, smashes ‘peer review ring’

From Washington Post • Jan. 28, 2022

Colonel Astor, a millionaire, Scholarly and profound, Said to his wife, “I’ll meet you dear Tomorrow in York Town.”

From The Titanic Disaster Poem by McKenzie, J. H.

Related Words

• erudite
• intellectual
• learned