vocational
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
teaching the practical skills you need for a specific job or trade.
relating to education or training that provides the specific skills and knowledge required for a particular occupation or trade.
Simple“The local college offers vocational courses in car repair and hair styling.”
In context“The government is investing in vocational education to ensure that school leavers possess the technical competencies required by the modern manufacturing sector.”
UsageUsually placed before a noun like 'training', 'course', or 'qualification'.
Teacher's tipLearners often confuse this with 'academic'. Explain that vocational training is for jobs like plumbing or nursing, while academic study is for subjects like history or philosophy.
SynonymsAntonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
relating to a person's career or a strong feeling that they were meant to do a certain job.
of or pertaining to a vocation or a sense of calling to a particular career path.
Simple“She felt a vocational calling to become a doctor from a very young age.”
In context“The counselor provided vocational guidance to help the students identify which career paths best matched their natural aptitudes.”
Synonymscareer related
Usage vocational subjects
“But she has watched older teenagers drop out because there are no high schools or vocational training opportunities for them.”
“Sixth-formers have basked in a summer of record-breaking exam results in academic and vocational subjects, allowing more than a quarter of a million 18-year-olds to go on to higher education.”
From vocation + -al.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.