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day boy

Day boy is a British term used in the context of boarding schools to describe a male pupil who attends the school during the day but returns home in the evenings, rather than living in school accommodation.

ˈdeɪ ˈbɔɪ125 viewsLast reviewed Jun 29, 2026+ Add a definition
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UK
#1·Apr 28, 2026UK

Day boy is a British term used in the context of boarding schools to describe a male pupil who attends the school during the day but returns home in the evenings, rather than living in school accommodation. It distinguishes such pupils from boarders, who live at the school full-time. The term is specific to the British public school and independent school system and carries class connotations associated with elite education. Day boys often occupied a slightly ambiguous social position within boarding school culture — present but not fully immersed in dormitory life.

He was a day boy at the school, which meant he missed out on the midnight feasts but avoided the cold showers.
Origin: Compound of 'day' + 'boy', distinguishing pupils who come during the day only from those who board. The term follows the British educational tradition of precise social categorisation within school hierarchies. Editorial expansion authored on Slangora.
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UK
#2·Apr 27, 2026UK

(UK) A male day pupil.

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UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.

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