Meaning & use
co-educational
Last updated
Meaning
adjectivenot comparable
Describing a school, class, or system where boys and girls are taught together.
Grammar: Used before a noun: a co-educational school. It is not usually used after a verb.
Patterns
- a co-educational school
- co-educational education
- co-educational classes
My parents sent me to a co-educational school because they wanted me to learn with boys and girls.
The university became co-educational in the 1970s.
Co-educational classes are now the norm in most countries.
Common combinations
- co-educational school
- She teaches at a co-educational school in the city.
- co-educational system
- The country changed to a co-educational system over ten years.
- become co-educational
- The college became co-educational in 1985.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mixed
- Mixed is informal and can describe any group of both sexes; co-educational is formal and specifically about education.
- mixed-sex
- Mixed-sex is used especially in British English for schools or activities; co-educational is more common in official contexts.
Opposites
Word family
- co-education noun
- The system of educating boys and girls together.
Commonly confused: co-educational or cooperative?
co-educational vs cooperative
Cooperative means working together helpfully; co-educational means boys and girls study together.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'co-educational' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Co-educational describes a school with both boys and girls. Option A describes a sports team, which is not about education; option C uses it as a verb, which it is not; option D uses it as a noun, which it is not.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “co-educational”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.