Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Academic \Ac`a*dem"ic\, Academical \Ac`a*dem"ic*al\, a. [L.
   academicus: cf. F. acad['e]migue. See {Academy}.]
   1. Belonging to the school or philosophy of Plato; as, the
      Academic sect or philosophy.

   2. Belonging to an academy or other higher institution of
      learning; scholarly; literary or classical, in distinction
      from scientific. ``Academic courses.'' --Warburton.
      ``Academical study.'' --Berkeley.

Academic \Ac`a*dem"ic\, n.
   1. One holding the philosophy of Socrates and Plato; a
      Platonist. --Hume.

   2. A member of an academy, college, or university; an
      academician.

Source : WordNet®

academic
     adj 1: associated with academia or an academy; "the academic
            curriculum"; "academic gowns"
     2: hypothetical or theoretical and not expected to produce an
        immediate or practical result; "an academic discussion";
        "an academic question"
     3: marked by a narrow focus on or display of learning
        especially its trivial aspects [syn: {donnish}, {pedantic}]

academic
     n : an educator who works at a college or university [syn: {academician},
          {faculty member}]