private school
120
1.9
- noun
- /ˈpraɪvɪt skuːl/
:
escuela privada
- And so I applied to Du's, a private school, and I got accepted.
- attend private school
- private school tuition
- private school students
She went to this super small private school for like troubled kids.
- She went to this super small private school for like troubled kids.
- What was it like going from private school to then like council estate school?
- And I said, private school, never mind, you couldn't get in.
- There were times so my brother and I went to a fee paying private school, grammar school.
- Did you have like I know you went to like a private school?
- And then they have a a statewide voucher program where kids can go to private schools or public schools.
- Think of what they offer in contrast to regular public or private schools.
- Put your niece and nephew through private school.
- And that private school was, was just that.
- I was going to private schools, nice cars.
- Who put me through private school and done everything they could for me.
- There's tough people in the private schools, public schools, prisons.
Examples
-
"Harry, I'm beginning to think that sending Brookie to private school was a mistake."
Fiction book (1991) -
I went to private school.
-
But we, we do pay for a private school as well for our children.
-
I send the girls to private school!
-
I think we ought to send you to a private school.
-
Today the public schools are nearly all black, and the private schools all white.
Academic text (2011) -
Bushra's brother goes to a private school and studies in English.
-
I've got three at a private school for gifted children in Lake Forest.
-
They had a great childhood, great private school, paid for my daughter's college.
-
The Harbor School is one of the best private schools in the country.
Antonyms
How Private
120
1.9
- US
305
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning of 'private school' is directly compositional: 'private' (reserved for specific people/not run by the government) modifies 'school' (an educational institution), so a learner can infer it refers to a school run independently and typically supported by fees. This noun + modifier pattern is common across languages and follows ordinary English semantics, making it readily understandable to a B1 learner who knows the parts.
Etymology
Private school comes from the simple image of a private place to learn: a school behind a gate where families pay fees and it is not run by the government. That's why private school means 'a school not run by the government but paid for and run by private people or groups'.