trainer
Americannoun
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a person or thing that trains.
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a staff member on an athletic team who gives first aid and therapy to injured players.
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a person who trains athletes; coach.
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a person who trains racehorses or other animals for contests, shows, or performances.
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an airplane or a simulated aircraft used in training aircrew members, especially pilots.
noun
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a person who trains athletes in a sport
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a piece of equipment employed in training, such as a simulated aircraft cockpit
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horse racing a person who schools racehorses and prepares them for racing
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(plural) an informal name for training shoes
Etymology
Origin of trainer
Explanation
A trainer is someone who teaches or coaches someone, like the trainer at the gym who promises that she'll have you ready to run a marathon in four months. Some trainers can teach you how to do sit ups, while others can instruct you to program a computer or be an effective leader. Dog trainers teach dogs to follow commands — and they teach dog owners to give commands effectively. The noun trainer comes from the verb train, "to discipline or teach," from an earlier sense, "to manipulate to bring a desired form," the way a gardener trains a rose to grow up a trellis.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Golden Tempo rallied deep in the pack to win the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, making Cherie DeVaux the first female trainer to win the big race.
From Los Angeles Times • May 3, 2026
The Marons, who live in Arizona, have been with Glatt for about five years, and they were close friends with the trainer and his wife.
From Los Angeles Times • May 2, 2026
Trainer Brad Cox is horse racing’s leading trainer, but his only victory in the Run for the Roses came out of a disqualification.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026
Potente’s trainer also understands the odds, noting this isn’t the first time he’s brought long shots to the Derby.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026
So the trainer has me work with flint, steel, and some charred cloth.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
