Schoolbag

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A bag designed specifically for carrying school supplies, books, and personal items to and from educational institutions
2. A type of backpack or bag, typically used by students, that holds items needed for classes and study materials
3. An item of personal storage used by learners to transport their educational materials and belongings to school or other learning environments

Etymology: "Schoolbag" is a plain compound: "school" joined to "bag," with nothing more hidden in it. The first element goes back to Latin "schola," a word for a place of leisure and learning, which passed through Greek "skholē," meaning leisure. The second element is the older and more ordinary word, a container of cloth, leather or paper, which English has used for centuries for carrying goods of every kind. Put together, the compound names a bag that travels with a pupil from home to classroom and back. The formation is transparent enough that nobody needs to be told what a schoolbag holds, and that transparency is much of the story: the word simply stacks two everyday nouns to describe a specific object of childhood.

Synonyms: backpack, satchel, bookbag, knapsack