academic
Other forms: academics
Something that is academic is related to school. Your parents might want to spend less time playing video games and more time focusing on academic pursuits. The noun academic refers to a professor or scholar.
As a noun or an adjective, academic relates to book learning and not always in a good way. An academic discussion back in Plato's Academy was probably something better than what it has more recently come to mean: a discussion that's academic has no place in the real world; it's not practical. An academic might have a PhD in Robotics but not know how to work the TV. It doesn't have to mean stuffy, though, just related to college — like when you need an academic gown for graduation.
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associated with academia or an academy“the academic curriculum”“academic gowns”
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an educator who works at a college or university
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synonyms:
academician, faculty member
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types:
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prof, professor
someone who is a member of the faculty at a college or university
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assistant professor
a teacher or lower rank than an associate professor
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associate professor
a teacher lower in rank than a full professor but higher than an assistant professor
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full professor
a professor of the highest rank
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Regius professor
holder of a British professorship created by a royal patron
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visiting professor
a professor visiting another college or university to teach for a limited time
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hypothetical or theoretical and not expected to produce an immediate or practical result“an academic discussion”“an academic question”
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Synonyms:
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theoretical
concerned with theories rather than their practical applications
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theoretical
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marked by a narrow focus on or display of learning especially its trivial aspects
/ˈækəˌdɛmɪk/
/ækəˈdɛmɪk/
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