faculty
noun
fac·ul·ty
ˈfa-kəl-tē 
plural faculties
1
a
: innate or acquired ability to act or do
man … how infinite in faculty—
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
b
: an inherent capability, power, or function
the faculty of hearing
c
: any of the powers of the mind (such as will, reason, or instinct) formerly held by psychologists to form a basis for the explanation of all mental phenomena
d
: natural aptitude
has a faculty for saying the right things
2
a
: a branch of teaching or learning (such as law, medicine, or liberal arts) in an educational institution
b
archaic
: something in which one is trained or qualified
3
a
: the members of a profession
b
: the teaching and administrative staff and those members of the administration having academic rank in an educational institution
an excellent mathematics faculty
c
faculty plural
: faculty members
many faculty were present
4
: power, authority, or prerogative given or conferred
The state has the faculty to define treason.
Examples of faculty in a Sentence
She's a member of the Harvard faculty.
The school hired more faculty.
a meeting with students and faculty
She has a faculty for making friends.
The Faculty of Arts and Sciences.
Recent Examples on the Web
Monroe had just flouted an interview panel’s unanimous recommendation on who should be hired to succeed Bogart, who was retiring that spring after 24 years as principal, and some faculty members were not happy.
—Nick Sullivan, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024
Astle, who was previously a faculty member at the Colorado School of Mines, a state university, relies on a pension for income.
—Lorie Konish, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2024
At the time, many leftist economists were associated with the antiwar movement and the Union for Radical Political Economics, which had been founded in 1968, by students and faculty at the University of Michigan, Harvard, and Radcliffe.
—John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2024
Henry will visit as the Americana Music Foundation artist-in-residence November 11–13, meeting with students and faculty and presenting a public performance; Bric will be the 2025 NYU-Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame artist-in-residence from April 29–May 1, 2025.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for faculty 
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Nick Sullivan, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024
Astle, who was previously a faculty member at the Colorado School of Mines, a state university, relies on a pension for income.
—Lorie Konish, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2024
At the time, many leftist economists were associated with the antiwar movement and the Union for Radical Political Economics, which had been founded in 1968, by students and faculty at the University of Michigan, Harvard, and Radcliffe.
—John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2024
Henry will visit as the Americana Music Foundation artist-in-residence November 11–13, meeting with students and faculty and presenting a public performance; Bric will be the 2025 NYU-Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame artist-in-residence from April 29–May 1, 2025.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for faculty
Articles Related to faculty
Dictionary Entries Near faculty
Cite this Entry
“Faculty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/faculty. Accessed 25 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
faculty
noun
fac·ul·ty
ˈfak-əl-tē
plural faculties
1
: ability to do something : talent
a faculty for making friends
2
: one of the powers of the mind or body
the faculty of hearing
3
: the teachers in a school or college
Medical Definition
faculty
noun
fac·ul·ty
ˈfak-əl-tē
plural faculties
1
a
: an inherent capability, power, or function
the faculty of hearing
digestive faculty
b
: one of the powers of the mind formerly held by psychologists to form a basis for the explanation of all mental phenomena
2
a
: the members of a profession
b
: the teaching and administrative staff and those members of the administration having academic rank in an educational institution
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