university

Definitions

uni- (one) + vers (turn) + -ity = from Latin universitas, 'the whole turned into one.' A medieval university was a universitas of scholars — a guild of teachers and students treated as a single corporate body. The community 'turned into one.'

Why It Means This

University shares its core with universe: both come from uni- (one) + vers (turn). A university began not as buildings but as a universitas — a community of scholars 'turned into one body,' a corporation with shared rights. The bricks came later; the word always meant the united whole of teachers and students.

Common Collocations

• 1.go to university上大学
• 2.university degree大学学位
• 3.university campus大学校园
• 4.research university研究型大学

Example Sentences

• 1.

  She studied physics at a top university.

• 2.

  He hopes to go to university next year.

• 3.

  The university offers hundreds of degree programs.