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Synonyms

secondary school

American  

noun

  1. a high school or a school of corresponding grade, ranking between a primary school and a college or university.

secondary school British  

noun

  1. a school for young people, usually between the ages of 11 and 18

"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

Etymology

Origin of secondary school

First recorded in 1825–35

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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.

Secondary school pupil numbers are expected to peak in 2026 and 2027, so the new government will have to start thinking ahead.

From BBC • Jul. 23, 2024

It’s 07:00 on a chilly winter morning and a group of students has just arrived at Chanyanya Primary and Secondary school, a little over an hour’s drive south-west of Zambia’s capital, Lusaka.

From BBC • Jul. 14, 2024

Secondary school pupils will have to keep wearing face coverings in communal areas after the Easter holidays.

From BBC • Mar. 22, 2022

Secondary school students in England will be required to wear face masks as they return to classes.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 4, 2022

Secondary school was a staging ground for work details in mines, fields, and forests.

From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden

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.