Meanings
plural real schools · alternative Real School
- historicalA secondary school (especially in German-speaking countries) teaching a curriculum of "real-world" subjects (math, science, modern languages) rather than one heavily laden with literature, Latin, and Ancient Greek.
The duke of Brunswick... has caused real schools, in contra-distinction to verbal, to be erected at Brunswick.
1765, Johann Gottlob Krueger, An Essay on the Education of Children, page 652 more examples
Realschulen, real schools... because they are less occupied with the study of languages (Verbalia) than with the knowledge of things (Realia).
1833 July, W. Hamilton, Edinburgh Review, page 521Like a Real School, real research is recognized as the genuine article, and persons engaged with it garner status and power.
2002, Educational Researcher, number 31, page 27Synonyms: Realgymnasium, Reformrealgymnasium, realshule
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA secondary school (especially in German-speaking countries) teaching a curriculum of "real-world" subjects (math, science, modern languages) rather than one heavily laden with literature, Latin, and Ancient Greek.
Origin
- GermanRealschule
- Englishreal school
Calque of German Realschule, from real (“real”) + Schule (“school”), from the view that classical education at Gymnasia was not fit for the real world.
More words from German
Full word history & related roots →Translations
German Realschule, Realgymnasium
- RealschuleTranslations
- RealgymnasiumTranslations
Swedish realskola, realläroverk
- realskolaTranslations
- realläroverkTranslations
Cite this entry
real school. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/real%20school
“real school.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/real%20school. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “real school,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/real%20school.
Source: real school on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.