undergraduate
Americannoun
-
undergraduates
plural
adjective
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having the standing of an undergraduate.
-
of, for, pertaining to, or characteristic of undergraduates.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of undergraduate
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How does undergraduate compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
An undergraduate is a college or university student who's not a graduate student. After high school, you can become an undergraduate. Undergraduates are students of universities and colleges: they've graduated from high school and have been accepted to college, but they haven't graduated yet. If the under in undergraduate seems confusing, that's because there are also graduate students, students who have a college degree but are no longer undergraduates and are pursuing an advanced degree, like a Master's or Ph.D. Lots of people say being an undergraduate was one of the best times of their lives: it's an exciting thing to be.
Vocabulary lists containing undergraduate
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.
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The University of Worcester undergraduate, of Yeadon Close in Redditch, Worcestershire, had been expected to argue he acted in self-defence and had set up the room to film a Dexter tribute for TikTok.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
The credential level with the most borrowers enrolled in failing programs is undergraduate certificates.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
This fall, Viterbi launched USC’s first undergraduate AI degree.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026
In a classic study she began as a Harvard undergraduate, hotel housekeepers were told—accurately—that their daily work already constituted meaningful exercise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
It is still a significant component in the teaching of undergraduate composition.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
As part of the deal, Tishman Speyer will make ground lease payments to the Cooper Union which the college wants to use to finance "a bold plan to restore full-tuition scholarships for all undergraduates".
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Credit-card use among undergraduates jumped to 54% in 2025, from 43% in 2018, according to the nonprofit higher-education research firm Trellis Strategies.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
Martina Serrano Alvarez and Reed Noyd also participated while they were undergraduates, and Colin Miller contributed as a doctoral student.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 25, 2026
Professors remember him as one of the most brilliant undergraduates they ever met.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
I go to the Stanford website, find a directory of undergraduates and lickety-split, I find his email.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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.
