Pupil definitions

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PU'PIL, n. [L. pupilla, dim. of pupa,pupus. See Pup.]
The apple of the eye; a little aperture in the middle of the iris and uvea of the eye, through which the rays of light pass to the crystalline humor, to be painted on the retina.
PU'PIL, n. [L. pupillus, dim. of pupa, pupus. See Pup.]
1. A youth or scholar of either sex under the care of an instructor or tutor.
2. A ward; a youth or person under the care of a guardian.
3. In the civil law, a boy or girl under the age of puberty, that is, under 14 if a male, and under 12 if a female.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a learner who is enrolled in an educational institution [syn: student, pupil, educatee]
2: the contractile aperture in the center of the iris of the eye; resembles a large black dot
3: a young person attending school (up through senior high school) [syn: schoolchild, school-age child, pupil]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English pupille minor ward, from Anglo-French, from Latin pupillus male ward (from diminutive of pupus boy) & pupilla female ward, from diminutive of pupa girl, doll Date: 1536 1. a child or young person in school or in the charge of a tutor or instructor ; student 2. one who has been taught or influenced by a famous or distinguished person II. noun Etymology: Middle French pupille, from Latin pupilla, from diminutive of pupa doll; from the tiny image of oneself seen reflected in another's eye Date: 1567 the contractile aperture in the iris of the eye • pupillary adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. n. 1 a person who is taught by another, esp. a schoolchild or student in relation to a teacher. 2 Sc. Law a boy less than 14 or a girl less than 12 years in age. Derivatives: pupillage n. (also pupilage). pupillary adj. (also pupilary). Etymology: ME, orig. = orphan, ward f. OF pupille or L pupillus, -illa, dimin. of pupus boy, pupa girl 2. n. the dark circular opening in the centre of the iris of the eye, varying in size to regulate the passage of light to the retina. Derivatives: pupillar adj. (also pupilar). pupillary adj. (also pupilary). Etymology: OF pupille or L pupilla, dimin. of pupa doll (as PUPIL(1)): so called from the tiny images visible in the eye

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Pupil Pu"pil, n. [F. pupille, n. fem., L. pupilla the pupil of the eye, originally dim. of pupa a girl. See Puppet, and cf. Pupil a scholar.] (Anat.) The aperture in the iris; the sight, apple, or black of the eye. See the Note under Eye, and Iris. Pin-hole pupil (Med.), the pupil of the eye when so contracted (as it sometimes is in typhus, or opium poisoning) as to resemble a pin hole. --Dunglison.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Pupil Pu"pil, n. [F. pupille, n. masc. & fem., L. pupillus, pupilla, dim. of pupus boy, pupa girl. See Puppet, and cf. Pupil of the eye.] 1. A youth or scholar of either sex under the care of an instructor or tutor. Too far in years to be a pupil now. --Shak. Tutors should behave reverently before their pupils. --L'Estrange. 2. A person under a guardian; a ward. --Dryden. 3. (Civil Law) A boy or a girl under the age of puberty, that is, under fourteen if a male, and under twelve if a female. Syn: Learner; disciple; tyro. -- See Scholar.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(pupils) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. The pupils of a school are the children who go to it. Over a third of those now at secondary school in Wales attend schools with over 1,000 pupils... N-COUNT 2. A pupil of a painter, musician, or other expert is someone who studies under that expert and learns his or her skills. After his education, Goldschmidt became a pupil of the composer Franz Schreker. N-COUNT: with poss 3. The pupils of your eyes are the small, round, black holes in the centre of them. N-COUNT

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. (Anat.) Apple of the eye. 2. Learner, scholar, disciple, student, tyro, beginner, novice, neophyte, catechumen. 3. (Law.) Ward.

Moby Thesaurus

apprentice, auditor, autodidact, baby blues, banjo eyes, beginner, bright eyes, catechumen, clear eyes, cornea, disciple, educatee, eye, eyeball, eyelid, goggle eyes, inquirer, iris, learner, lens, lid, monitor, naked eye, neophyte, nictitating membrane, novice, oculus, optic, optic nerve, orb, organ of vision, peeper, popeyes, praepostor, prefect, retina, saucer eyes, scholar, schoolboy, schoolgirl, sclera, self-taught person, starry orbs, student, studier, trainee, tyro, unaided eye, visual organ