What does "graduate" mean?
A person who is recognized by a university as having completed the requirements of a degree studied at the institution.
Graduate
/ˈɡɹæd͡ʒuət/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person who is recognized by a university as having completed the requirements of a degree studied at the institution.
- Grammar: graduate is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: academic, adept, adjust, admirable crichton.
- Useful contrasts: electrical engineering student, collegians, drop out.
- Usage evidence: When did you graduate from Oxford?
How to use "graduate"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "graduate" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "graduate" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "graduate" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "graduate" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "graduate" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "academic" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "graduate", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person who is recognized by a university as having completed the requirements of a degree studied at the institution.
"If the government wants graduates to stay in the country they should offer more incentives."
- 2 a measuring instrument for measuring fluid volume; a glass container (cup or cylinder or flask) whose sides are marked with or divided into amounts wordnet
- 3 A person who is recognized by a high school as having completed the requirements of a course of study at the school. Canada, US
- 4 a person who has received a degree from a school (high school or college or university) wordnet
- 5 A person who is recognized as having completed any level of education. Philippines
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A graduated (marked) cup or other container, thus fit for measuring.
Verb
- 1 To be recognized by a school or university as having completed the requirements of a degree studied at the institution. ergative, intransitive
"The man graduated in 1967."
- 2 make fine adjustments or divide into marked intervals for optimal measuring wordnet
- 3 To be certified as having earned a degree from; to graduate from (an institution). proscribed, transitive
"Trisha graduated college."
- 4 confer an academic degree upon wordnet
- 5 To certify (a student) as having earned a degree transitive
"Indiana University graduated the student."
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 receive an academic degree upon completion of one's studies; completion of a course or training wordnet
- 7 To mark (something) with degrees; to divide into regular steps or intervals, as the scale of a thermometer, a scheme of punishment or rewards, etc. transitive
- 8 To change gradually. intransitive
"As the species graduate into each other, both in form and in habits, from the grass-eating Geese to the fish-eating Harelds, it is difficult, […] to divide this large group into sections."
- 9 To prepare gradually; to arrange, temper, or modify by degrees or to a certain degree; to determine the degrees of.
"to graduate the heat of an oven"
- 10 To bring to a certain degree of consistency, by evaporation, as a fluid.
- 11 To taper, as the tail of certain birds. intransitive
- 12 To approve (a feature) for general release. transitive
"We have graduated the new machine-learning features and will roll them out tomorrow."
- 13 Of an idol: to exit a group; or of a virtual YouTuber, to leave a management agency; usually accompanied with "graduation ceremony" send-offs, increased focus on the leaving member, and the like. Japanese, intransitive
"Fans speculate that she was forced to graduate due to harassment and doxxing by stalkers and haters."
Adjective
- 1 graduated, arranged by degrees
- 2 holding an academic degree
- 3 relating to an academic degree
Adjective
- 1 of or relating to studies beyond a bachelor's degree wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"When did you graduate from Oxford?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "graduate"?
Common synonyms include: academic, adept, adjust, admirable crichton, advance, aggrandize.
How do you use "graduate" in a sentence?
When did you graduate from Oxford?
How do you pronounce "graduate"?
Pronounced /ˈɡɹæd͡ʒuət/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English graduat(e) (“(noun) a graduate of a university; (adjective) graduate, having graduated”, also used as the past participle of graduaten (“to graduate”)), borrowed from Medieval Latin graduātus (“graduated, graduate”), perfect passive participle of graduō (“to graduate”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from gradus (“step”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix). The noun is originally derived within Latin from the adjective via substantivization, see -ate (noun-forming suffix). Sense 10 of the verb, relating to Japanese entertainment, is a semantic loan from Japanese 卒業 (sotsugyō).
Etymology 2
From Middle English graduaten (“to graduate”), from (adjective) graduat(e) (also used as the past participle of graduaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), from Medieval Latin graduātus, see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.