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schoolboy

American  
[skool-boi] / ˈskulˌbɔɪ /

noun

  1. a boy attending school.

schoolboy British  
/ ˈskuːlˌbɔɪ /

noun

  1. Gender-neutral form: pupil.   schoolchild.  a child attending school

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • schoolboyish adjective

Etymology

Origin of schoolboy

First recorded in 1580–90; school 1 + boy

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.

As a schoolboy, Norris wrote, he was shy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

Trotsky was a dazzling speaker and a dandy who “never quite stopped being a clever schoolboy desperate to show others how much he had learned.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026

Another of the claimants, Baroness Lawrence, is the mother of the murdered black schoolboy Stephen Lawrence.

From BBC • Feb. 10, 2026

Draco Malfoy, one of the schoolboy villains in the Harry Potter series, has become an unlikely New Year mascot.

From Barron's • Feb. 5, 2026

Trademaster called, and while Matty watched, Mentor raised his hand and waved it frantically, like a schoolboy hoping for a reward.

From "Messenger" by Lois Lowry

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.