/di ploh"meuh/ , n. , pl. diplomas , Lat. diplomata /-meuh teuh/ , v. , diplomaed, diplomaing .
n.
1. a document given by an educational institution conferring a degree on a person or certifying that the person has satisfactorily completed a course of study.
2. a document conferring some honor, privilege, or power.
3. a public or official document, esp. one of historical interest: a diploma from Carolingian times.
v.t.
4. to grant or award a diploma to.
[ 1635-45; diploma a letter of recommendation, an official document díploma a letter folded double, equiv. to diplo-, var. s. of diploûn to double (deriv. of diplóos; see DIPLO-) + -ma suffix of result ]