summer school

American

noun

study programs offered by a school, college, or university during the summer to those who wish to obtain their degrees more quickly, who must make up credits, or who wish to supplement their education.
a school offering such programs.

summer school British

noun

a school, academic course, etc, held during the summer

"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 summer school

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75

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.

Details on how to apply will be announced during the summer school term.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

The superintendent said that summer school increased the graduation rate from 86% to 87% as seniors were able to complete required course work.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 22, 2024

There’s a report on at least one Polish citizen, as well as students of a journalism summer school run by Ms Nemtsova.

From BBC • Aug. 31, 2024

Students will arrive with varying degrees of summer enrichment or summer slide — an issue the district tried to address with summer school, which reached more than 100,000 students.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 12, 2024

Emma suckered them into letting me babysit her, except for the mornings I had to go to summer school.

From "Wintergirls" by Laurie Halse Anderson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023