# trainee

/ˈtɹeɪˈni/ (US) · /tɹˈeɪniː/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/trainee
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. a person learning a job

noun · CEFR B1

someone who is learning how to do a job while they are working there.

For teachers: an individual undergoing a period of formal training or apprenticeship within a workplace to acquire specific professional skills.

- The new trainee spent his first week watching how the senior staff handled customers.
- The law firm typically recruits twenty trainees each autumn, putting them through a rigorous two-year rotation across various departments.

### 2. a young person in a reformatory

noun · CEFR C2 · Formal · Technical

a young person who is kept in a special school or center to learn better behavior after breaking the law.

For teachers: a juvenile offender detained in a reformatory or training school for the purpose of rehabilitation and vocational education.

- The center provides the trainees with vocational skills to help them find work after their release.
- Legislative reforms in the mid-twentieth century sought to reclassify juvenile offenders as trainees to emphasize rehabilitation over purely punitive measures.

## Examples

- The new trainee starts in the marketing department tomorrow.
- Each trainee must complete a six-month probationary period before they are offered a permanent contract with the firm.
- The senior architect spent the afternoon reviewing the trainee's initial sketches, offering constructive feedback on structural integrity while encouraging the junior's creative approach to the facade.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.