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pupil
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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English
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Middle English pupille, from Anglo-Norman pupille (“orphan”), from Latin pūpillus (“orphan, minor”), variant of pūpulus (“little boy”), from pūpus (“child, boy”).
Noun
pupil (plural pupils)
- (dated outside UK) A learner at a school under the supervision of a teacher.
- 1668 December 19, James Dalrymple, “Mr. Alexander Seaton contra Menzies” in The Deciſions of the Lords of Council & Seſſion I (Edinburgh, 1683), page 575
- The Pupil after his Pupillarity, had granted a Diſcharge to one of the Co-tutors, which did extinguiſh the whole Debt of that Co-tutor, and conſequently of all the reſt, they being all correi debendi, lyable by one individual Obligation, which cannot be Diſcharged as to one, and ſtand as to all the reſt.
- 1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 269, about a school in Lower Peover:
- The bell which called the pupils to their lessons can still be seen on the roof.
- 2013 July 19, Peter Wilby, “Finland spreads word on schools”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 30:
- Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. Charging school fees is illegal, and so is sorting pupils into ability groups by streaming or setting.
- 1668 December 19, James Dalrymple, “Mr. Alexander Seaton contra Menzies” in The Deciſions of the Lords of Council & Seſſion I (Edinburgh, 1683), page 575
- One who studies under supervision of a renowned expert in their field.
- Plato was Socrates' pupil, and in turn Aristotle was Plato's pupil.
- 2010, Plato, “Euthyphro”, in Christopher Rowe, transl., The Last Days of Socrates, Penguin Books Ltd., →ISBN, line 9b:
- I understand; it’s because I seem to you to be a worse pupil than the judges in court, because obviously you’ll demonstrate to them that the sorts of things your father did are unjust and hated by all the gods.
- (law, obsolete) An orphan who is a minor and under the protection of the state.
Usage notes
- A pupil is typically a young person, such as a schoolchild. Older learners, e.g. at university, are generally called students.
Derived terms
Translations
learner
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orphan who is a minor and under the protection of the state
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See also
Etymology 2
From Middle English pupille, from Old French pupille, from Latin pūpilla (“pupil; little girl, doll”), named because of the small reflected image seen when looking into someone's eye.
Noun
pupil (plural pupils)
- (anatomy) The hole in the middle of the iris of the eye, through which light passes to be focused on the retina.
- 1983, Richard Ellis, The Book of Sharks, Knopf, →ISBN, page 29:
- There are sharks with round pupils, sharks with slitlike pupils, and some with pupils that expand and contract with the amount of light available. As unimpressive as this might sound to people who are used to having their pupils dilate and contract regularly, realize that no bony fish has this modification of the eye.
- (zoology) The central dark part of an ocellated spot.
Derived terms
Translations
the hole in the middle of the iris of the eye
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Further reading
Anagrams
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Catalan
Etymology
Pronunciation
Noun
pupil m (plural pupils, feminine pupil·la, feminine plural pupil·les)
Further reading
- “pupil”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
- “pupil”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
- “pupil” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “pupil” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
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Danish
Etymology
From Latin pūpilla (“little girl”), diminutive of pūpa (“girl”).
Pronunciation
Noun
pupil c (singular definite pupillen, plural indefinite pupiller)
- pupil (the hole in the middle of the iris of the eye)
Declension
References
- “pupil” in Den Danske Ordbog
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Dutch
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Middle Dutch pupille, from Old French pupille, from Latin pūpilla.
Noun
pupil f (plural pupillen, diminutive pupilletje n)
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Middle French pupille, from Latin pūpillus.
Noun
pupil m (plural pupillen, diminutive pupilletje n)
- (chiefly sports) minor, generally a prepubescent child over the age of 5
- favoured student, protégé
- institutionalised pupil (one who receives an upbringing or education in an institution)
- (archaic) orphan
- Synonym: wees
Malay
Etymology
Borrowed from English pupil, from Middle French pupille, from Latin pūpilla (“pupil; little girl, doll”).
Pronunciation
- (Johor-Selangor) IPA(key): /pupel/
- (Riau-Lingga) IPA(key): /pupɪl/
- Rhymes: -upel, -pel, -el
Noun
pupil (Jawi spelling ڤوڤيل, plural pupil-pupil)
Synonyms
Polish
Etymology
Pronunciation
Noun
pupil m pers (female equivalent pupilka, diminutive pupilek, related adjective pupilarny)
- favorite son, favored student, protégé, teacher's pet (student who is perceived to be favored by the teacher)
- Synonym: beniaminek
- Hypernym: faworyt
- (archaic, education) pupil (learner at a school under the supervision of a teacher)
Declension
Declension of pupil
Noun
pupil m animal (female equivalent pupilka)
- pet (animal kept as a companion)
Declension
Declension of pupil
Further reading
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Romanian
Etymology
Noun
pupil m (plural pupili)
Declension
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