Search from various English teachers...
sueyanglala
What does "school-masterly "mean? This brief book is aimed at high school students, but speaks to anyone learning at any stage of life. Its formal, serious style closely matches its content, a school-masterly book on schooling. Does it mean "male teacher"?
Jun 30, 2017 9:29 AM
Answers · 11
1
Strictly speaking a "schoolmaster" is a male teacher, but that's not the point that's being made here. The writer first says that the book has "a formal, serious style." "Schoolmasterly" is another way of saying that; it means "in the style of a teacher." There are cultural overtones but in the U.S. the ordinary word for a teacher is "teacher," and when I hear the word "schoolmaster" I think of somebody wearing a suit and conducting classes in a strict, formal, dignified, and slightly authoritarian way. "Schoolmasterly" here is similar in meaning to the word "pedantic," except that "pedantic" is a negative word, meaning somebody who is overly formal and overly attentive to unimportant details.
June 30, 2017
School-masterly is not a real English word. It is invented by the author to communicate the style of the book. Reading it is like listening to a school master (teacher). It is not wrong. The author is just having fun with the language. School master is an old fashioned way of saying school teacher. However, the principal teacher in a school is still called the Headmaster, or Headmistress for a female.
June 30, 2017
Traditionally it refers to men but it's in this case I feel like it could be generally referring to anyone who watches over a class.
June 30, 2017
Still haven’t found your answers?
Write down your questions and let the native speakers help you!

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn a language from the comfort of your own home. Browse our selection of experienced language tutors and enroll in your first lesson now!