state university
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of state university
An Americanism dating back to 1825–35
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.
Johns Hopkins offered $16,000 more, making the cost less than that of a state university in New York, where the family lives.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 28, 2026
These buyouts are absurd, an outgrowth of a crazed marketplace and undeniably screwy optics at a state university.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 4, 2025
A friend who teaches at a state university related to me that a student of his said he supported Trump “because he’s funny.”
From Salon • Aug. 24, 2025
They could then transfer those credits to their state university, and the cost of college could be cut in half.
From Slate • Apr. 29, 2024
His plan took shape the evening he escorted my sisters Lisa and Gretchen and me to the local state university to see Dave Brubeck, who was then touring with his sons.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
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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.