tuition

American  

[too-ish-uhn, tyoo-] / tuˈɪʃ ən, tyu- /

noun

1. the charge or fee for instruction, as at a private school or a college or university.

   The college will raise its tuition again next year.

2. teaching or instruction, as of pupils.

   a school offering private tuition in languages.

3. Archaic. guardianship or custody.

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tuition British  

/ tjuːˈɪʃən /

noun

1. instruction, esp that received in a small group or individually

2. the payment for instruction, esp in colleges or universities

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Other Word Forms

• self-tuition noun
• tuitional adjective
• tuitionary adjective
• tuitionless adjective

Etymology

Origin of tuition

1250–1300; Middle English tuicion a looking after, guarding < Latin tuitiōn- (stem of tuitiō ), equivalent to tuit ( us ) (past participle of tuērī to watch; tutelage ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

In the years since, schools, working with consulting firms, have focused on maximizing the amount of tuition revenue they could receive per incoming class of students.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 27, 2026

That means that about 2.87 million Americans could have their tuition fully covered for about $25 billion, and nearly 23 million students could be covered for $200 billion.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2026

A teacher at a west London private boys' school has been barred from teaching after telling his students to use fake emails to organise "secret" private tuition sessions.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

We would need to raise tuition rates by $1,000 per year, per child, to offset that cost.

From Salon • Mar. 20, 2026

My parents had been paying tuition for Craig to go to Catholic school.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama