own school

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "own school" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it to indicate that someone has a school that they possess or operate. Example: "She decided to open her own school to teach art." Alternative expressions include "personal school" and "private school."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Formal & Business

Encyclopedias

Wiki

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

Team slammed by our own school newspaper.

The New York Times

Examples abound in my own school.

The Washington Post

He thought about his own school.

The Washington Post

They have their own school somewhere else.

The New York Times

It turns out that she has her own school.

The New Yorker

Q What made you want to start your own school?

The New York Times

"They wanted the change to happen at their own school".

The New York Times

Students might replicate the study in their own school.

The New York Times

Her own school experiences played a part too.

The New York Times

"I could almost start my own school," she said.

The New York Times

They're either jocks or popular at their own school.

The New Yorker

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

In administrative writing, use it to clarify that a policy applies specifically to the internal campus environment rather than the district at large.

Common error

Avoid using "own school" when the context of possession is already clear and does not require emphasis. For example, 'I went to my school' is often more natural than 'I went to my own school' unless you are contrasting it with another person's school.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "own school" functions as a noun phrase where 'own' acts as an intensive adjective modifying the noun 'school'. This structure is used to emphasize possession or a specific personal connection. In the examples provided by Ludwig, it frequently follows a possessive pronoun such as 'my', 'her', 'their' or 'his'.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

65%

Science

15%

Encyclopedias

10%

Less common in

Formal & Business

5%

Wiki

3%

Social Media

2%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "own school" is a versatile and highly correct linguistic tool used to emphasize personal or collective possession of an educational institution. According to Ludwig AI, the phrase appears frequently in high-quality journalism and scientific literature. It is most often utilized when an author wants to distinguish a specific school from others, such as when a coach discusses their "own school" newspaper or a researcher monitors children in their "own school" environment. While synonyms like "respective school" or "personal school" exist, "own school" remains the most common choice due to its clarity and directness across various levels of formality.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

personal school

emphasizes the individual nature of the connection

respective school

distinguishes between multiple schools belonging to different people

private school

focuses on the non-governmental status of the institution

independent school

highlights autonomy from local or national authorities

individual school

refers to a specific entity within a larger system

proprietary school

focuses specifically on the business ownership aspect

alma mater

refers specifically to a school from which one has graduated

home school

specifically refers to education occurring at a residence

base school

refers to the primary assigned institution for a student

local school

emphasizes geographical proximity over personal association

FAQs

How to use "own school" in a sentence?

You can use it to denote possession or affiliation, as in 'She decided to open her "own school" after years of teaching' or 'The students were proud of their "own school" results'.

What can I say instead of "own school"?

Depending on your meaning, you might use "personal school", "respective school" or "private institution".

Is "own school" grammatically correct?

Yes, it is perfectly correct. As noted by Ludwig AI, the phrase uses the intensive adjective 'own' to emphasize the noun 'school'.

What is the difference between "own school" and "private school"?

While "own school" refers to a school that someone possesses or belongs to, a "private school" specifically refers to an institution not funded by the government.