Valedictorian

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˌvæl.əd.ɪkˈtɔɹ.ɪən/

Definitions

1. A top-performing student in a graduation cohort who is selected to give the farewell speech during the commencement ceremony
2. An individual who achieves the highest academic distinction among classmates and presents the final address at the graduation event
3. A student with the highest academic achievements in their graduating class who is chosen to speak at the graduation ceremony

Etymology: The word dates to 1759, and its ancestor is "valedictory," which described a speech made when leaving a place. Latin "valedicere" meant "to bid farewell," built from "vale" ("farewell") and "dicere" ("to say"). Over the 1700s, English speakers attached the suffix "-an," as in "librarian" or "grammarian," to "valedictory" to name a person rather than a speech. The result was a title for the student chosen to give the farewell address at a graduation. What makes the story surprising is the direction of the sense change. The word began as a term for a departing person's words, and the speaker was the one leaving. Over time the focus shifted from the speech to the person who gave it, and from departure to achievement. The honor went to the top scholar, not to someone saying goodbye, so the sense moved from farewell toward distinction.

Synonyms: graduate, top student, honor student, distinguished student, lead scholar