Definition

Verb: 1. To train again: To undergo or provide training for a second or subsequent time, often to refresh skills or knowledge. 2. To teach new skills: To provide training for a different job, profession, or set of skills, typically to adapt to new employment opportunities or technological changes.

Usage and Examples

• The factory workers were retrained to operate the new automated machinery. (They received new training for their existing roles.)
• After his injury, the athlete had to retrain his muscles to walk properly. (He underwent training again to recover a skill.)
• The government program aims to retrain displaced manufacturing workers for careers in renewable energy. (It teaches them completely new skills for a different field.)
• She decided to retrain as a software developer after working in marketing for a decade.

Advanced Usage

• "Retrain oneself": To actively undertake a process of learning new skills independently.
  • He used online courses to retrain himself in data analysis.
• "Retrain for": Specifies the new field or purpose of the training.
  • Many teachers are retraining for careers in educational technology.

Variants and Related Words

• Retraining (noun): The process or instance of being retrained.
  • The company invested in the retraining of its entire staff.
• Retrainable (adjective): Capable of being retrained.
  • The workforce is highly adaptable and retrainable.

Synonyms

• Re-educate: To educate again, especially in new methods or subjects. (Often used interchangeably with "retrain" in the context of learning new skills.)
• Reskill: To teach or learn new skills, especially for a new job. (A more modern synonym focusing specifically on new skill acquisition.)
• Refresh: To review or renew knowledge of a skill. (Implies updating existing knowledge rather than learning something entirely new.)

Antonyms

• Untrain: To cause to lose skills or training. (Rarely used; "deskill" is more common in sociological contexts.)
• De-skill: To reduce the level of skill required for a job, often through automation.

Related Phrases

• Career change: A shift to a different occupation, for which retraining is often necessary.
• Upskilling: The process of learning new skills or improving existing ones to advance in one's current career. (Contrasts with "reskilling" or "retraining" for a different career.)
• Vocational training: Training focused on skills for a specific trade or occupation, which is often the type of training involved in retraining programs.

Verb

1. train again
   • He is retraining to become an IT worker
2. teach new skills
   • We must retrain the linguists who cannot find employment