Definition, synonyms and related words
plural of pupil
"The teacher noticed that several pupils were struggling to keep their eyes open during the long lecture."
In plain English: Pupils are the small black circles in the middle of your eyes that get bigger or smaller to let light in.
"The teacher asked all the pupils to open their books to page twenty."
Usage: Use "pupils" to refer to the black circular openings in the center of eyes that control light entry. Do not confuse this with "students," which refers to people who are learning under a teacher or mentor.
Derived from Latin pupilla, this term originally referred to a doll, specifically the image of one's own face seen in another person's eye. It entered English via Old French and Middle English with the meaning of the small opening in the iris that admits light.