semester

American  

[si-mes-ter] / sɪˈmɛs tər /

noun

• semesters
  plural

1. (in many educational institutions) a division constituting half of the regular academic year, lasting typically from 15 to 18 weeks.

2. (in German universities) a session, lasting about six months and including periods of recess.

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semester British  

/ sɪˈmɛstə /

noun

1. (in some universities) either of two divisions of the academic year, ranging from 15 to 18 weeks

2. (in German universities) a session of six months

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Usage

What does semester mean? A semester is one half of an academic year. If an academic year is divided into semesters, it means it is divided into two semesters. (If the year is divided into thirds, each part is called a trimester.)Semesters are typically used in high schools and universities. In many universities, a semester lasts 15 to 18 weeks. In German universities, a semester can last up to six months. Example: I’m thinking about taking a break from school for a semester to work and save some money.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• semestral
  adjective
• semestrial
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• semesters
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of semester

1820–30; < German < Latin sēmē ( n ) stris of six months duration < *sex-mēnstris, equivalent to sex six + mēns ( is ) month + -tris adj. suffix (perhaps representing an earlier *mens ( i ) -teros )

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Explanation

A semester is half of a school year. In September of your first year of high school, you could describe yourself as "a first-semester freshman." The noun semester comes up often when you're in high school and college. It's an easy way to divide the school year, into two equal halves, or semesters. Sometimes a class lasts for the whole year, and sometimes for just one semester. Occasionally schools split the year into three trimesters just to make things interesting. Originally, semester meant "six months," from the Latin root of the same meaning, semestris.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

semester semesters

Ottawa and Brussels are also understood to be working to have Canada participate in the EU's Erasmus youth program, which allows university students to spend a semester abroad, among other things.

From Barron's ● Oct. 29, 2026

The second tripled monthly sales but left when her university semester resumed.

From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026

The academic year is nine months long, so her budget of $1,500 per month comes to $13,500 for the school year, or $6,750 per semester.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 24, 2026

Remedies Cornell eventually introduced included banning freshmen from attending Greek parties during their first semester and shortening the pledging period from eight weeks to four to reduce opportunities for hazing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

All semester, you work on building it, and then your parents come to see.

From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina

Upon appeal, Shanklin’s two-semester suspension from school and campus activities was lessened to four semesters of probation during which he could remain on campus.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

For two semesters, I dressed up to teach from my living room laptop, receiving excellent evaluations.

From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026

Instead of taking on summer internships or job-shadowing opportunities between semesters, he worked a retail gig to pay for college.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026

At that point he was studying remotely having left Harvard after three semesters to join the Philadelphia Union.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

Penelope had taken three semesters of art appreciation at the Swanburne Academy, so she had no doubt whatsoever.

From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood

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