vocation

American  

[voh-kay-shuhn] / voʊˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• vocations
  plural

1. 

   a particular occupation, business, or profession; calling.

   Synonyms:

   pursuit, employment

2. a strong impulse or inclination to follow a particular activity or career.

3. a divine call to God's service or to the Christian life.

4. a function or station in life to which one is called by God.

   the religious vocation; the vocation of marriage.

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vocation British  

/ vəʊˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. a specified occupation, profession, or trade

2. 1. a special urge, inclination, or predisposition to a particular calling or career, esp a religious one

   2. such a calling or career

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• vocations
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of vocation

1400–50; late Middle English vocacio ( u ) n < Latin vocātiōn- (stem of vocātiō ) a call, summons, equivalent to vocāt ( us ) past participle of vocāre to call ( see -ate ¹) + -iōn- -ion

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Explanation

Unless you can find someone to pay you to sip fancy tropical drinks on the beach, your vocation is not likely to be a vacation. Rather, the word means something you know how to do––or what you do for a living. The word vocation derives from the Latin vocare "to call." To become a priest, you need to feel that you have been "called" to the ministry directly by God. Their job is their calling, or vocation. An avocation is something you do because you love it. Everyone should make it their goal to have their avocation become their vocation.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vocation vocations

"I think of you, dear families, who, despite the many difficulties you face each day, persevere courageously in your vocation and mission," Pope Leo said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026

Perhaps, given your vocation, you also benefited from a parsonage at some point.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 26, 2026

"I am very happy with the choices I made and my vocation in life," he said.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

St. Joseph proves it, a father by vocation rather than blood, who raised the Son of an eternal Father.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026

The jockey lived hard and lean and tended to die young, trampled under the hooves of horses or imploding from the pressures of his vocation.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

There are vocations filling traditional seminaries and religious communities in the U.S., loyal to Rome and to their local bishops.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2025

Affluent families often paid a skilled artisan to train their children in well-paid, rewarding vocations.

From Slate ● Nov. 20, 2024

Asia Pacific is one of only a few places in the world where the Catholic Church is growing in terms of baptised faithful and religious vocations.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2024

In his 2023 Faith and Law presentation, Simon offered “a brief framework on how Christians could and should engage with the distinctive tensions within vocations in law, policy, and associated disciplines.”

From Salon ● Mar. 7, 2024

For the first twenty years of its existence, the Institute offered a high school education and training in various vocations, such as agriculture.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson

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