graduate
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graduate¹
- /ˈɡɹæd͡ʒuət/ UK
- /ˈɡɹædjuət/ UK
- /ˈɡɹæd͡ʒuɪt/ US
Where it comes from
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).
noun graduates
- 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.
- A person who is recognized by a high school as having completed the requirements of a course of study at the school. If the school board wants a higher percentage of students to become graduates, they should improve their remedial help for underachieving students.
- A graduated (marked) cup or other container, thus fit for measuring.
adjective more graduate · most graduate
- graduated, arranged by degrees
- holding an academic degree
- relating to an academic degree
graduate²
- /ˈɡɹædjueɪt/ UK
- /ˈɡɹæd͡ʒueɪt/ UK
- /ˈɡɹæd͡ʒueɪt/ US
Where it comes from
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.
verb graduates · graduating · graduated
- To be recognized by a school or university as having completed the requirements of a degree studied at the institution. The man graduated in 1967.
- To be certified as having earned a degree from; to graduate from (an institution). Trisha graduated college.
- To certify (a student) as having earned a degree Indiana University graduated the student.
- 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.
- To change gradually. 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.
- 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
- To bring to a certain degree of consistency, by evaporation, as a fluid.
- To taper, as the tail of certain birds.
- To approve (a feature) for general release. We have graduated the new machine-learning features and will roll them out tomorrow.
- 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. Fans speculate that she was forced to graduate due to harassment and doxxing by stalkers and haters.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: postgraduate, grad, alumnus, alumna, calibrate, fine-tune, high, alum, student, graduation, degree, doctorate, diploma, university, alumni, undergraduate
Translations
Every language
noun from a university
| Español | graduado, graduada, graduados |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 졸업생 joreopsaeng |
| 日本語 | 卒業生 sotsugyōsei |
| 中文 | 畢業生 /毕业生 bìyèshēng |
| हिन्दी | स्नातक snātak |
| Português | graduado |
| Français | licencié, licenciée, diplômé, diplômée |
| Deutsch | Absolvent, Absolventin |
| Italiano | laureato, laureata |
| Русский | выпускни́к vypuskník, выпускни́ца vypuskníca, диплома́нт diplománt, диплома́нтка diplomántka |
| العربية | خِرِّيج ḵirrīj, خِرِّيجَة ḵirrīja |
noun US: from a high school
| 日本語 | 卒業生 sotsugyōsei |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 畢業生 /毕业生 bìyèshēng |
| Deutsch | Absolvent, Absolventin |
| Italiano | diplomato, diplomata |
| Русский | выпускни́к vypuskník, выпускни́ца vypuskníca |
verb to be recognized by a university as having completed the requirements of a degree
| Español | graduarse |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 졸업하다 joreophada |
| 日本語 | 卒業する sotsugyō suru |
| 中文 | 畢業 /毕业 bìyè |
| Português | formar-se, graduar |
| Français | obtenir sa licence |
| Deutsch | absolvieren, graduieren |
| Italiano | laurearsi |
| Русский | око́нчить okónčitʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | tốt nghiệp |
| العربية | دَرَّجَ darraja, تَخَرَّجَ taḵarraja |
verb US: to be recognized by a high school as having completed the requirements of a course of study
| 日本語 | 卒業する sotsugyō suru |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 畢業 /毕业 bìyè |
| Italiano | diplomarsi |
| Tiếng Việt | tốt nghiệp |
verb transitive: to certify (a student) as having earned a degree
| Português | graduar, formar, diplomar |
|---|---|
| Français | diplômer |
| Русский | дипломи́ровать diplomírovatʹ |
verb to mark a scale on (something) so it can be used for measuring
| 日本語 | 目盛る memoru |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | graduieren |
| Русский | градуи́ровать graduírovatʹ |
verb to become a graduate at a ceremony
| Français | devenir licencié, devenir licenciée |
|---|
Talk about this word "graduate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/graduate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. graduate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/graduate "graduate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/graduate.Cite this
@misc{graduate_2026,
title = {graduate},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/graduate},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
