special education

noun

: classes or instruction designed for students with special educational needs

Examples of special education in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The test scores refer to state English and math proficiency rates among special education students. — Chaewon Chung, Sacbee.com, 30 June 2026 Families and advocates have warned that moving special education to a health department marks a return to the medical model. — Annie Ma, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026 Families and advocates have warned that moving special education to a health department marks a return to the medical model. — ABC News, 1 July 2026 Idaho has long struggled to adequately fund special education. — Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman, 1 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for special education

Word History

First Known Use

1921, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of special education was in 1921

Rhymes for special education

See All Rhymes for special education

Browse Nearby Words

special ed
special education
special effect
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Special education.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/special%20education. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

special education

noun
: classes or instruction designed for students with special educational needs

More from Merriam-Webster on special education

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about special education

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All