valedictorian
noun
val·e·dic·to·ri·an
| \ ˌva-lə-ˌdik-ˈtȯr-ē-ən
\
\
Definition of valedictorian
: the student usually having the highest rank in a graduating class who delivers the valedictory address at the commencement exercises
Examples of valedictorian in a Sentence
She was the valedictorian of her class in 1985.
Recent Examples on the Web
The valedictorian of his public high school, he was nominated for West Point by his congressman, Bob Dornan, a fiery hard-right favorite of the defense industry. — Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, "Mike Pompeo, the Secretary of Trump," 19 Aug. 2019 Popo was this year’s valedictorian at Arabia Mountain High School in DeKalb County, the local magnet high school. — Ellen Mcgirt, Fortune, "Why Today’s Google Doodle Is So Special: raceAhead," 13 Aug. 2019 The prospective student — who faced long odds because of a disability that required her to take many of her courses from home — made national headlines for suing to block officials at her school from naming multiple valedictorians. — BostonGlobe.com, "What leads Harvard to rescind admission?," 18 June 2019 The prospective student – who faced long odds because of a disability that required her to take many of her courses from home – made national headlines for suing to block officials at her school from naming multiple valedictorians. — The Washington Post, The Mercury News, "What leads Harvard to rescind admission? Racism, plagiarism – and killing your mom.," 18 June 2019 Rooha Haghar, the valedictorian at Emmett J. Conrad High School in Dallas, Texas, initially included the names of black teens, including Trayvon Martin and Tamir Rice, who were killed by police force in her speech. — Joshua Bote, USA TODAY, "Valedictorian says her mic was cut when she spoke the names of black victims of police," 6 June 2019 Years later, Watts graduated from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis as valedictorian of his class. — Ivana Hrynkiw | Ihrynkiw@al.com, al, "‘I have enough confidence for all of us’: UAB’s Ray Watts tells his story," 11 Aug. 2019 The twins aced their classes, and graduated high school sharing the coveted title of valedictorian. — CBS News, "Immigrant twins who picked grapes in California graduate from medical school one day apart," 15 June 2019 This change came after Colerain High School had seven valedictorians in 2002 and five in 2004. — Rachel Berry, Cincinnati.com, "Losing valedictorians and salutatorians 'a step in the wrong direction,' Ohio lawmaker says," 12 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'valedictorian.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for valedictorian
valedictorian
noun
English Language Learners Definition of valedictorian
US
: the student who has the highest grades in a graduating class and who gives a speech at graduation ceremonies
See the full definition for valedictorian in the English Language Learners Dictionary
valedictorian
noun
val·e·dic·to·ri·an
| \ ˌva-lə-ˌdik-ˈtȯr-ē-ən
\
\
Kids Definition of valedictorian
: a student usually of the highest standing in a class who gives the farewell speech at the graduation ceremonies