alumnus:

(plural: alumni; pronunciation: the first ‘u’ rhymes with the letter ‘u’ in “cut” and the second ‘u’ with the letter ‘a’ in “about”)
a male (a boy or man) student who has completed his graduate course in a school, college or university;
a former male (boy or man) student of a school, college or university,

e.g.

Our university honours an alumnus each year with the ‘distinguished alumnus’ award.

Being an alumnus of St. Peter’s Vocational High School, the great philanthropist, Sir Gerald Donald, donated a large sum of money to the Alumni Association.

an alumnus (L) receiving the Alumnus of the Year Award, Toccoa Falls College, USA

Language usage:  ‘Alumnus’ and ‘alumna’ both come from Latin and still have Latin plurals. ‘Alumnus’ is a male (masculine — boy or man) noun whose plural is “alumni“, and ‘alumna’ is a female (feminine — girl or woman) noun whose plural is alumnae. Some coeducational institutions, where both male and female students study together,  usually use “alumni” for graduates of both sexes. But women educational institutions who do not  like to use (masculine) male forms in such cases may use the phrase alumni and alumnae or the form alumnae/i. And according to www.dictionary30.com, the term ‘almn’, with ‘almns’ as its plural form, is used for either ‘an alumna’ or ‘an alumnus’.


About the Author:BC Kumar

BC Kumar, an English Language Teacher, taught in numerous countries including Ethiopia, Oman and India, shares his knowledge and passion for the English Language. Disclaimer: This is a free educational website and all content has been compiled by the author. All copyrights to images and videos belong to their respective owners.

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