intern

1 of 4

noun

in·​tern ˈin-ˌtərn 

variants or less commonly interne

: an advanced student or graduate usually in a professional field (such as medicine or teaching) gaining supervised practical experience (as in a hospital or classroom)

internship

ˈin-ˌtərn-ˌship 

noun

intern

2 of 4

verb (1)

in·​tern ˈin-ˌtərn 

interned; interning; interns

intransitive verb

: to work as an intern

intern

3 of 4

verb (2)

in·​tern ˈin-ˌtərn  in-ˈtərn 

interned; interning; interns

transitive verb

: to confine or impound especially during a war

intern enemy aliens

internee

(ˌ)in-ˌtər-ˈnē 

noun

intern

4 of 4

adjective

in·​tern in-ˈtərn  ˈin-ˌtərn 

variants or interne

archaic

: internal

Synonyms

Verb (2)

• commit
• confine
• immure
• imprison
• incarcerate
• jail
• jug
• lock (up)

Examples of intern in a Sentence

Verb (2)

some Polish citizens were interned in Russian camps during World War II

After medical school, he worked as an intern at the university hospital.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

There were plenty of pagers but not an iPhone in sight when viewers met Meredith Grey and the show’s first set of surgical interns. —Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 1 June 2024

The current crop of interns at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital have been itching to get back into the OR, but after resuming her role as head of the intern program, Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) has been keeping them busy with procedure logs and other activities. —Jacqueline Weiss, Peoplemag, 31 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

French interne, from interne, adjective

Adjective

Middle French interne, from Latin internus

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1879, in the meaning defined above

Verb (1)

circa 1928, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1866, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

circa 1560, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

intern

1 of 3 verb

in·​tern ˈin-ˌtərn  in-ˈtərn 

: to confine especially during a war

interned enemy aliens

intern

2 of 3 noun

in·​tern

variants also interne

ˈin-ˌtərn

: an advanced student or graduate in a special field (as medicine or teaching) who is gaining supervised practical experience (as in a hospital or classroom)

intern

3 of 3 verb

in·​tern ˈin-ˌtərn 

: to work as an intern

Medical Definition

intern

1 of 2 noun

in·​tern

variants also interne

ˈin-ˌtərn 

: a physician gaining supervised practical experience in a hospital after graduating from medical school

called also houseman

intern

2 of 2 intransitive verb

in·​tern ˈin-ˌtərn 

: to act as an intern