vocational school
- noun
- /voʊˈkeɪʃənəl skuːl/
- Corinne B. Whitesell teaches at Vocational Resources and Services, Inc., a postsecondary vocational school in Anchorage, Alaska.
- technical vocational school
- vocational school or college
- attending vocational school
Examples
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An additional four respondents were in graduate school, seven were attending community colleges, and one was at a vocational school.
Academic text (2005) -
Skill training in vocational schools, as we alluded to previously, contributed to the further expansion of SMEs.
Academic text (1992) -
We recommend vocational schools to boys that come through our camp.
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A few were college graduates, though far more attended vocational school.
Academic text (2007) -
In high school, I really wanted to go to vocational school where you learn to Weld and fix cars and build houses.
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Martha worked as a cooking teacher in the vocational school in Viipuri.
Fiction book (1992) -
Currently, about one-third of the secondary educational students in China are attending vocational schools.
Academic text (1996) -
One season at the vocational school, if you study hard, will qualify Jean as a mechanic.
Blog text (3) -
Any student planning to attend senior college or vocational school must be wary of State Student Assistance Commissions.
Blog text (27) -
Many students choose to attend a vocational school to learn skills for specific careers.
Synonyms
A school where people learn practical skills like carpentry or plumbing
A school that teaches practical skills for jobs like car repair or computer work
A school that teaches useful job skills like cooking or car repair
A former British school teaching mainly practical and job skills instead of academic subjects
How Practical
- Archaic
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a school that teaches job-specific skills' is directly derived from combining 'vocational' (focused on skills for specific professions) with 'school' (an educational institution). This straightforward adjective+noun composition is cross-linguistically common and follows normal English compounding patterns, so a learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Vocational school comes from the word vocational, which comes from the old word 'vocation' meaning a person's 'job' or 'calling', and school meaning a place to learn. So vocational school literally means 'a school for a job', which is why it means a school that teaches the skills for a certain job.