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summa cum laude

American  
[soom-uh koom lou-dey, -duh, -dee, suhm-uh kuhm law-dee] / ˈsʊm ə kʊm ˈlaʊ deɪ, -də, -di, ˈsʌm ə kʌm ˈlɔ di /

adverb

  1. with highest praise: used in diplomas to grant the highest of three special honors for grades above the average.

summa cum laude British  
/ ˈsʊmɑː kʊm ˈlaʊdeɪ /

adverb

  1. with the utmost praise: the highest of three designations for above-average achievement in examinations. In Britain it is sometimes used to designate a first-class honours degree Compare cum laude magna cum laude

"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

Etymology

Origin of summa cum laude

First recorded in 1895–1900, summa cum laude is from Latin summā cum laude

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.