scholar

noun

schol·​ar ˈskä-lər 

1

: a person who attends a school or studies under a teacher : pupil

2

a

: a person who has done advanced study in a special field

b

: a learned person

3

: a holder of a scholarship

Synonyms

• pundit
• sage
• savant

Examples of scholar in a Sentence

She's a renowned scholar of African-American history.

scholars have long debated whether there is ever such a thing as a truly selfless act

Recent Examples on the Web

Newsweek has reached out to several legal scholars for comment via email on Sunday. —Mark Davis, Newsweek, 16 Mar. 2025

Her fate remains one of literature’s most haunting unsolved mysteries, drawing the fascination of scholars, writers and literary enthusiasts. —Patti Callahan Henry, People.com, 16 Mar. 2025

However, some conservative scholars — sometimes characterized as on the fringes of American legal scholarship — affirm that the Trump administration could make a winning case to limit birthright citizenship. —Syra Ortiz Blanes and, Miami Herald, 15 Mar. 2025

If adopted, legal scholars have argued, the new law could help the world’s richest person in his effort to reverse the court’s order in January 2024 that rescinded his mammoth pay package. —Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 15 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English scoler, from Old English scolere & Anglo-French escoler, from Medieval Latin scholaris, from Late Latin, of a school, from Latin schola school

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing scholar

• Rhodes scholar

Rhymes for scholar

• caller
• collar
• crawler
• dollar
• faller
• haller
• hauler
• holler
• smaller
• squalor
• taller
• trawler

Kids Definition

scholar

noun

schol·​ar ˈskäl-ər 

1

: a person who attends a school or studies under a teacher : pupil

2

a

: a person who has done advanced study in a special area

b

: a learned person

3

: a holder of a scholarship

scholarly adjective