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# schoolboy

«schoolboy» in Mova's school dictionary: **a boy who goes to school** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

### part of speech

noun (a schoolboy, schoolboys); adjective use (a schoolboy joke, schoolboy error)

### meaning for a pupil

1) A schoolboy is a boy who goes to school. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#m1)

2) Used before another noun, schoolboy means the kind of thing a schoolboy would do or have, often silly or simple: a schoolboy joke, a schoolboy error. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#m2)

3) (UK, sport) A schoolboy player is a boy who plays a sport for his school or at under-18 level. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#m3)

### sense in the lessons

In stories and old books schoolboys wear caps and blazers and have adventures. In everyday talk, especially in the UK, «a schoolboy error» means a very basic mistake that even a beginner should avoid, and «schoolboy humour» means rude or silly jokes. The girl's word is «schoolgirl»; a neutral word is «pupil» or «student».

### examples

- The schoolboy ran to catch the bus with his bag flapping. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x1)
- In the old photo, the schoolboys wear shorts and caps. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x2)
- Forgetting to carry the one was a schoolboy error. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x3)
- My uncle still laughs at schoolboy jokes about burps. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x4)
- He played schoolboy rugby in Ireland. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x5)
- Every schoolboy in the story wanted to find the treasure. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x6)
- The schoolboys lined up in the yard. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x7)
- Then there arrived on the scene a mere schoolboy--a merry, happy-hearted youth, but at the same time strong and well-grown. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/#x8)

### note

Countable: one schoolboy, two schoolboys. One word, no space or hyphen. «Schoolboy error» is a fixed phrase meaning a basic mistake; it can be said about anyone, even adults. Plural is regular: schoolboys (not schoolboies).

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «schoolboy» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/schoolboy/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.