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section man

section man

8.9
A person who leads a small discussion or lab group for a large college course
  • noun
  • /ˈsɛkʃən mæn/
  • US
translation icon : instructor de sección
  • The section man was responsible for leading weekly discussions for the biology course.

Examples

  • The section man explained the lab procedures clearly.

  • The students found their section man to be approachable and knowledgeable.

  • Each section man held office hours to help students with difficult concepts.

  • A good section man can make a big difference in student understanding.

  • The section man was responsible for leading weekly discussions for the biology course.

  • Each section man held office hours to help students with difficult concepts.

  • A good section man can make a big difference in student understanding.

Synonyms

instructor
vssection man
221 2.9

A person who teaches a subject or skill in a class

is a specific subsection leader under the main course teacher
tutor
vssection man
99 1.8

A person who teaches one student or a small group privately

operates within a formal course leading assigned small groups under a main teacher
lecturer
vssection man
42 3.1

A person who gives talks to students at a college or university

focuses on running smaller discussions or labs rather than giving main lectures
section instructor
vssection man
  • US
4.0

A teacher who leads a part of a college course, like a lab or discussion group

is the same role but refers specifically to a male person
section teacher
vssection man
  • US
4.4

A person who leads a small class inside a large college course

is the same role but refers specifically to a male person

Surface Forms

section man singular
section men plural

Morphology

section + man

The combination of 'section' (a part of a larger course or item) and 'man' (a person) does give a learner the general idea of a person associated with a section, so there is some compositional transparency. However, the specific institutional sense of an instructor who leads a course section (discussion/lab leader) is a specialized, somewhat culture-bound role and not fully predictable from the parts, making the expression only partially transparent to B1 learners.

Etymology

The compound section man comes from large college classes being split into small sections, with a man assigned to lead each one. So, the image of a person standing in front of a small group explains why it means 'a man who teaches a section'.