Class Names a Lesson, a Rank and a Quality
A class is a group of students, a social rank, or a category. British English also uses it to mean style or excellence.
A class is a group of students, a division of society, or any category of similar things. The Latin *classis* originally named the divisions into which Roman citizens were sorted by wealth for military service, so the social sense is the oldest and the classroom sense a much later extension of grouping people together. British English adds another use: *he has real class* means style and quality, and *classy* is the adjective.
- A teaching group. *A class of thirty.*
- A social division. *The middle class.*
- A category. *A class of drugs.*
- Style or quality. *A player of real class.*
- Classify — to sort into groups. *Classify the samples.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | class | A large class. |
| Plural | classes | Evening classes. |
| Verb | class | Class it as urgent. |
| Adjective | classy | A classy finish. |
| Verb | classify | Classify the data. |
- She teaches a class of twenty-eight.Education.
- Class remains a live issue in Britain.Society.
- That was a class performance.British: excellent.
Class in different fields
- Biology — a rank between phylum and order
- Travel — first, business, economy
- Ships and trains — a group built to one design
- Programming — a template for creating objects
- Degree class — the British grading of a first, a 2:1 and so on
Latin *classis*, one of the divisions of the Roman people, possibly from *calare*, to call or summon. English took it in the 1600s.
What does classy mean?
Stylish and of good quality. It is informal, and in British English often applies to skill as well as taste.
Where does the word class come from?
From Latin classis, the wealth-based divisions of Roman citizens used for military service.