vocational
Americanadjective
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of, relating to, or connected with a vocation or occupation.
a vocational aptitude.
-
of, relating to, or noting instruction or guidance in an occupation or profession chosen as a career or in the choice of a career.
a vocational counselor.
adjective
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of or relating to a vocation or vocations
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of or relating to applied educational courses concerned with skills needed for an occupation, trade, or profession
vocational training
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of vocational
Explanation
If you're learning a skill that could lead to a specific job, like how to repair cars or how to be a chef, you're getting vocational training. Vocational means "related to a career." A vocation is a job or career, so something vocational is related to a specific kind of work. There are vocational schools that train people for jobs, which might be what you think of when you read the word vocational, though it could describe anything related to working. Vocational comes from the Latin word vocationem, or "a calling." It originally meant a spiritual calling, but grew to include employment in the 16th century.
Vocabulary lists containing vocational
President Trump's First State of The Union Address (2018)
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Revolution in Our Time
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Promises to Keep
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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.
Instead, it's a framework that aims to give teenagers a "clear line of sight to good jobs" in vocational and technical areas.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
But improving access to technical and vocational education has been a common focus for governments in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland too in recent years.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
“The accumulation of crises has made it harder for young people to focus on the past,” says Matthias Thiel, head of the political education program at the Louise Schroeder vocational school in Berlin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
Workforce Pell has an additional effect: It recognizes the importance of vocational education to many workers’ futures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
It didn’t require a degree or vocational skills.
From "The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates" by Wes Moore
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.
