Freshers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A term describing new students at a university or college, particularly in their first year of study
2. Referring to individuals who are new to a particular environment or activity, often seeking to adapt and learn
3. Used to denote newcomers who may lack experience but are enthusiastic and eager to engage in their new surroundings

Etymology: The plural "freshers" is the form used in British universities for the students who arrive at the start of their first year, and the word is a shortened version of "freshman" with a comparative ending attached. Its root is the adjective "fresh," which goes back through Old English "fersċ" to a Proto-Germanic word meaning new, unsalted, or not yet worn. "Fresher" on its own is the comparative form of that adjective, meaning more fresh, so the word's ancestry is an ordinary one. The surprise lies in the clipping. "Freshman" was itself built from "fresh" plus "man," and in the case of "fresher" the first part was kept while "-man" was dropped, leaving a word that is grammatically a comparative but is used as a noun. Speakers then treated the ending as a standard agent suffix, which is why "fresher" can stand for a person, the way "newcomer" does. The phrase "freshers' week," the introductory period at the start of the university year, shows how the noun is used in everyday British speech.

Synonyms: newcomers, beginners, novices

Antonyms: veterans, experts