What does pupil mean?

Definitions for pupil
ˈpyu pəlpupil

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word pupil.

Princeton's WordNet

  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)

Wiktionary

  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 Dictionary

  1. PUPILnoun

    Etymology: pupilla, Lat.

    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.

    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.

    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.

Wikipedia

  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.

ChatGPT

  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 Dictionary

  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.]

Wikidata

  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 Dictionary

  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 Medicine

  1. Pupil

    The aperture in the iris through which light passes.

Editors Contribution

  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 Resources

  1. pupil

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

Entomology

  1. Pupil

    the central mark of an ocellate spot.

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

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

How to pronounce pupil?

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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. Julie Fitzgerald:

    I did not want to take the picture because I had this dreaded feeling in the pit of my stomach, i took the picture, and boom: His whole pupil was just white— and that’s when I knew.

  2. 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.

  3. Nietzsche:

    One repays a teacher badly if one only remains a pupil.

  4. John Stuart Mill:

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

  5. Emerson:

    The secret of education lies in respecting the pupil.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

pupil#10000#11316#100000

Translations for pupil

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"pupil." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 Dec. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/pupil>.

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