career

noun

ca·reer | \ kə-ˈrir

Definition of career

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : speed in a course —used especially in the phrases in full career or at full career The trumpets sounded, and the knights charged each other in full career.— Sir Walter Scott

b : course, passage the sun's career across the sky

2 : encounter, charge

3 : a field for or pursuit of consecutive progressive achievement especially in public, professional, or business life Washington's career as a soldier

4 : a profession for which one trains and which is undertaken as a permanent calling a career in medicine —often used before another noun a career diplomat

career

verb

careered; careering; careers

Definition of career (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

: to go at top speed especially in a headlong manner a car careered off the road

Synonyms & Antonyms Careen and Career Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about career

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Careen and Career

Verb

Some people might be confused by the warning to not confuse careen and career, because the most common sense of career ("a profession") is not much like any of the meanings of careen. But when employed as a verb, career does have some semantic overlap with careen; both words may be used to mean "to go at top speed especially in a headlong manner." A car, for instance, may either careen or career. Some usage guides hold, however, that the car is only careening if there is side-to-side motion, as careen has other meanings related to movement, among which is "to sway from side to side."

Did You Know?

Verb

Chances are you're very familiar with the noun career meaning "a profession followed as a permanent occupation." What you may not know is that the word career got its start in the world of medieval tournaments. Jousting required knights to ride at full speed in short bursts, and 16th-century English speakers used the noun "career" (from Middle French carriere) to refer to such gallops as well as to the courses knights rode. By the mid-17th century, the verb had acquired its general "go fast" meaning, and by the 19th century the noun had developed the workaday use that is common today. (In case you're wondering, "career" is not related to "careen," which also means "to move at high speed"; "careen" has nautical origins, tracing to the Latin word for "hull.")

Examples of career in a Sentence

Noun

She hopes to pursue a career in medicine. My career as a waitress lasted one day. During his long career in advertising he won numerous awards and honors.

Verb

she careered off to the class she'd almost forgotten

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

She was discovered in Budapest, and then relocated to Asia where her career began to take off. — Chrissy Rutherford, Harper's BAZAAR, "Barbara Palvin is the Newest Victoria's Secret Angel," 14 Mar. 2019 Have things improved over the course of your design career? — Jessica Andrews, Teen Vogue, "Designer Anita Dongre Talks Dressing Priyanka Chopra, Beyoncé, and Sophie Turner," 14 Mar. 2019 As their relationship has blossomed over their years, so have their careers—definitely no coincidence. — Maria Carter, Woman's Day, "The Unconventional Path That Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy Took to Wedded Bliss," 12 Mar. 2019 Over masala chai, the talk turns to Alexander Calder, an artist Aram has admired his entire career. — Whitney Robinson, ELLE Decor, "Tour Michael Aram's two stunning homes in India," 12 Mar. 2019 Ethan requested to meet Luke through Make-A-Wish Foundation, and the experience changed his singing career forever. — Blair Donovan, Country Living, "'American Idol' Judge Luke Bryan Helps a Teen With Cystic Fibrosis Audition for the Show," 10 Mar. 2019 When male athletes divorced, no one wondered about the fate of their careers. — Mattie Kahn, Glamour, "Lindsey Vonn Is Ready for Her Next Race—Life," 8 Mar. 2019 Mentorship can also increase self confidence, boost communication skills, and enhance leadership qualities that'll benefit girls throughout their careers. — Shannon Willoby, Redbook, "Why Girls Need More Mentors in STEM," 8 Mar. 2019 Spencer has had a successful career in TV acting, and has even crossed over into writing. — Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, "6 Things to Know About Abigail Spencer, Meghan Markle's Close Friend and Former Suits Costar," 20 Feb. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Later that month, a van careered into a crowd near a London mosque, and one man died. — Joanna Sugden, WSJ, "Car Crashes Outside U.K. Parliament in Suspected Terror Attack," 14 Aug. 2018 Sputnik Chic With the United States and Russia expelling diplomats, many people worry that the countries are careering toward another Cold War. — New York Times, "Trends in Design and Home Furnishings," 8 May 2018 The males can be quite aggressive with other like-minded, mating males, and chase scenes featuring two or more brilliant yellow birds careering through the vegetation are not unusual. — New York Times, "Beautiful and Brutal," 31 May 2018 Students now get almost no exposure to career opportunities in high school. — Anthony P. Carnevale, Washington Post, "The Education and Labor departments were made for each other," 22 June 2018 Over the last 32 months, 152 players, ranging from veteran All-Stars to career minor leaguers, have been welcomed to Seattle or said goodbye to it. — Jon Tayler, SI.com, "How Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto Wheeled and Dealed His Way to First-Half Success," 22 June 2018 While some scholars argue that Putin’s Russia is careering downward, others rank it second only to the United States. — Simon Saradzhyan, Washington Post, "Is Vladimir Putin’s Russia in decline? We figured out how to measure ‘national power.’," 20 June 2018 On the field, his Russian teammates were careering toward him. — Rory Smith, New York Times, "For Russia, Five Goals and One Big Sigh of Relief," 14 June 2018 Watson is Penn’s all-time record holder for receiving touchdowns in a season (14), career receptions (286), career receiving yards (3,777), career receiving touchdowns (33) and career all-purpose yards (4,116). — Philly.com Staff, Philly.com, "2017 fall college academic all-area teams," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'career.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.