Definitions for pupil
ˈpyu pəlpupil

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:2.7 / 3 votes

1. student, pupil, educateenoun

   a learner who is enrolled in an educational institution

2. pupilnoun

   the contractile aperture in the center of the iris of the eye; resembles a large black dot

3. schoolchild, school-age child, pupilnoun

   a young person attending school (up through senior high school)

WiktionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. pupilnoun

   The hole in the middle of the iris of the eye, through which light passes to be focused on the retina.

2. Etymology: From pupille, from pupillus, variant of pupulus, from pupus.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. PUPILnoun

   Etymology: pupilla, Lat.

   1. The apple of the eye.

   Looking in a glass, when you shut one eye, the pupil of the other, that is open, dilateth. Francis Bacon, Nat. Hist.

   Setting a candle before a child, bid him look upon it, and his pupil shall contract itself very much to exclude the light; as when after we have been some time in the dark, a bright light is suddenly brought in and set before us, till the pupils of our eyes have gradually contracted. John Ray, on the Creation.

   The uvea has a musculous power, and can dilate and contract that round hole in it, called the pupil of the eye. More.

   The rays, which enter the eye at several parts of the pupil, have several obliquities to the glasses. Isaac Newton, Opticks.

   2. [ Pupille, Fr. pupillus, Lat.] A scholar; one under the care of a tutor.

   My master sues to her, and she hath taught her suitor,
   He being her pupil, to become her tutor. William Shakespeare.

   One of my father’s servants,
   With store of tears this treason ’gan unfold,
   And said my guardian would his pupil kill. Edward Fairfax.

   If this arch-politician find in his pupils any remorse, any fear of God’s future judgments, he persuades them that God hath so great need of men’s souls, that he will accept them at any time, and upon any condition. Walter Raleigh.

   Tutors should behave reverently before their pupils. Roger L'Estrange.

   The great work of a governor is, to settle in his pupil good habits, and the principles of virtue and wisdom. John Locke.

   3. A ward; one under the care of his guardian.

   Tell me, thou pupil to great Pericles,
   What are the grounds
   To undertake so young so vast a care? Dryden.

   So some weak shoot, which else would poorly rise,
   Jove’s tree adopts, and lifts him to the skies;
   Through the new pupil soft’ning juices flow,
   Thrust forth the gems, and give the flow’rs to blow. Thomas Tickell.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Pupil

   The pupil is a black hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina. It appears black because light rays entering the pupil are either absorbed by the tissues inside the eye directly, or absorbed after diffuse reflections within the eye that mostly miss exiting the narrow pupil. The term "pupil" was coined by Gerard of Cremona.In humans, the pupil is round, but its shape varies between species; some cats, reptiles, and foxes have vertical slit pupils, goats have horizontally oriented pupils, and some catfish have annular types. In optical terms, the anatomical pupil is the eye's aperture and the iris is the aperture stop. The image of the pupil as seen from outside the eye is the entrance pupil, which does not exactly correspond to the location and size of the physical pupil because it is magnified by the cornea. On the inner edge lies a prominent structure, the collarette, marking the junction of the embryonic pupillary membrane covering the embryonic pupil.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. pupil

   A pupil is typically defined as a learner or student who is guided by a teacher, tutor, or other instructor. It is also a term used in anatomy referring to the black circular opening in the center of the eye's iris, which allows light to enter the retina.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:4.0 / 1 vote

1. Pupilnoun

   the aperture in the iris; the sight, apple, or black of the eye. See the Note under Eye, and Iris

2. Pupilnoun

   a youth or scholar of either sex under the care of an instructor or tutor

3. Pupilnoun

   a person under a guardian; a ward

4. Pupilnoun

   a boy or a girl under the age of puberty, that is, under fourteen if a male, and under twelve if a female

5. Etymology: [F. pupille, n. fem., L. pupilla the pupil of the eye, originally dim. of pupa a girl. See Puppet, and cf. Pupil a scholar.]

WikidataRate this definition:4.7 / 3 votes

1. Pupil

   The pupil is a hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to enter the retina. It appears black because light rays entering the pupil are either absorbed by the tissues inside the eye directly, or absorbed after diffuse reflections within the eye that mostly miss exiting the narrow pupil. In humans the pupil is round, but other species, such as some cats, have vertical slit pupils, goats have horizontally oriented pupils, and some catfish have annular types. In optical terms, the anatomical pupil is the eye's aperture and the iris is the aperture stop. The image of the pupil as seen from outside the eye is the entrance pupil, which does not exactly correspond to the location and size of the physical pupil because it is magnified by the cornea. On the inner edge lies a prominent structure, the collarette, marking the junction of the embryonic pupillary membrane covering the embryonic pupil.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Pupil

   pū′pil, n. a little boy or girl: one under the care of a tutor: a scholar: a ward: (law) one under the age of puberty—i.e. under fourteen years for males, and twelve for females.—adj. under age.—ns. Pupilabil′ity (rare), pupilary nature: confidential character; Pū′pilage, Pū′pillage, state of being a pupil: the time during which one is a pupil; Pupilar′ity, Pupillar′ity, the time between birth and puberty.—adjs. Pū′pilary, Pū′pillary, pertaining to a pupil or ward.—Pupil teacher, one who is both a pupil and a teacher. [Fr. pupille—L. pupillus, pupilla, dims. of pupus, boy, pupa, girl.]

2. Pupil

   pū′pil, n. the round opening in the middle of the eye through which the light passes: the apple of the eye, so called from the baby-like figures seen on it: (zool.) the central dark part of an ocellated spot.—adjs. Pū′pilary, Pū′pillary; Pū′pilate (zool.), having a central spot of another colour.—n. Pupillom′eter, an instrument for measuring the size of the pupil of an eye. [Same as above word.]

U.S. National Library of MedicineRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Pupil

   The aperture in the iris through which light passes.

Editors ContributionRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. pupil

   A facet of the mechanism of an eye.

   The opening in the center of the eye where light enters the eye.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on February 2, 2020  

2. ---

   pupil

   A person who attends a school.

   The pupil was so focused and diligent and therefore learned easily.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on February 25, 2020  

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. pupil

   Song lyrics by pupil -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by pupil on the Lyrics.com website.

EntomologyRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Pupil

   the central mark of an ocellate spot.

Matched Categories

1. • Aperture
   • Enrollee
   • Young Person

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'pupil' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #4016

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'pupil' in Written Corpus Frequency: #4817

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'pupil' in Nouns Frequency: #424

How to pronounce pupil?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say pupil in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of pupil in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of pupil in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of pupil in a Sentence

1. John Stuart Mill:

   The pupil who is never required to do what he cannot do, never does what he can do.

2. Francisco Zelada:

   The last death threat I received in March said: 'We'll shoot you while you're driving your car'. We're afraid. Some schools and the areas around them are totally controlled by gangs, we fear reprisals from the gangs. Any decision you take and they don't like, like disciplinary action against a pupil, can bring a threat.

3. Oliver Wendell Holmes:

   The mind of a bigot is like the pupil of the eye. The more light you shine on it, the more it will contract.

4. Emerson:

   The secret of education lies in respecting the pupil.

5. Victor Hugo:

   The pupil dilates in darkness and in the end finds light, just as the soul dilates in misfortune and in the end finds God.”

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=pupil
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Pupil
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=pupil
4. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupil
5. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
6. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pupil
7. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=pupil
8. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=pupil
9. ^ Entomology
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/22748/22748-h/22748-h.htm#:~:text=pupil