English Reference
noun

curriculum

n.
US /kɝˈɪkjəɫəm/ UK /kʌɹˈɪkjʊləm/ cur·ricu·lum UK spelling curriculum's, curriculum's

  1. 01 B2 Upper Intermediate Formal

    a set of rules or standards that schools must follow when teaching students.

    a framework of learning standards and requirements established by a government or educational authority.

    Simple

    The government is introducing a new science curriculum to improve test scores.

    In context

    The national curriculum was revised to place a greater emphasis on digital literacy and computational thinking across all primary key stages.

    Usage

    Often used with 'national' or 'state' to describe government-mandated education.

She has been researching the Townsend family and those they enslaved for over 20 years and works with teachers to develop curriculums to share Liss’ story, using primary documents from her research.

Smithsonian Magazine· 17 Aug 2026

Sudanese teachers have had to adjust to Chad’s curriculum while working across language differences.

Al Jazeera· 15 Aug 2026

Borrowed from Latin curriculum (“course”), derived from currō (“run, move quickly”). Doublet of curricle.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency Common
Updated