Dictionary.com Dishes On Most Popular Definitions Searched At Your College

By Megan (Weyrauch) Johnson on April 2, 2016

Have you ever wondered what word students at your college or university look up the most on Dictionary.com?

Well, wonder no longer, as on March 24, 2016, Dictionary.com released Your College in a Word, the most popular definitions searched at colleges and universities from coast to coast, according to this press release. The list encompasses top-seeded NCAA March Madness schools, the Ivy League, and campuses in New England, Massachusetts and Texas.

timeshighereducation.com

“From putting polishing touches on final papers to finding the perfect adjective to describe a Friday night party, college students are looking up words that run the gamut from lighthearted to more serious topics,” said Elizabeth McMillan, CEO of Dictionary.com, in the press release. “These words illuminate the different culture or issues that surround each specific campus, from an Ivy League’s frequent search of the word ‘fat’ to Duke University’s more obscure word, ‘encomium.’”

Below is the list, taken directly from the press release, determined through zip code matches to search data in 2015.

Baylor University: phlegmatic
Boston College: irascibly
Boston University: measurement
Brown University: trust
Columbia University: barter
Cornell University: amiable
Dartmouth College: bare
DePaul University: wreaking
Duke University: encomium
Gonzaga University: last
Harvard University: fat
Indiana University Bloomington: comport
Iowa State University: photoautotroph
Northeastern University: metaphor
Princeton University: abode
Providence College: contender
Rice University: hopeful
Sam Houston State University: environment
Smith College: sparkle
Southern Methodist University: godspeed
Texas A&M University: computer
Texas State University: utilitarianism
Tufts College: onomatopoeia
University of Houston: ethics
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign: imperative
University of Kansas: precipitation
University of Maryland, College Park: exigence
University of Miami: historical novels
University of New Hampshire: awesome
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: chagrined
University of Notre Dame: judeo-christian
University of Oklahoma: hydrate
University of Oregon: hurricane
University of Pennsylvania: niche
University of Texas: masochist
University of Vermont: knowledge
University of Virginia: reprisal
University of Wisconsin-Madison: physique
Villanova University: ambivalent
Wellesley College: dissolve
Yale University: ambiguous

Is your school not represented here? Email nikki@dottedlinecomm.com to find out the most frequently searched word at your university.

Dictionary.com, the leading online and mobile resource dedicated to helping users master the art of language, provides tens of millions of global monthly users with reliable access to millions of definitions, synonyms, audio pronunciations, example, sentences, translations, spelling help and more.

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Get Top Stories Delivered Weekly

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format