train 1 of 2

1
as in entourage
a body of employees or servants who accompany and wait on a person a movie star who never goes anywhere without a train of personal assistants to cater to his every whim and need

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2
as in fleet
a group of vehicles traveling together or under one management a train of supply trucks making its way to the army encampment

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3
as in queue
a series of persons or things arranged one behind another already a long train of ticket buyers waiting outside the stadium

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4

train

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verb

1
2
3
as in to focus
to fix (as one's attention) steadily toward a central objective train all your thoughts on imagining how you'd score the winning goal in the game

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4
as in to aim
to point or turn (something) toward a target or goal trained his eyes on the distant bull's-eye

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

5
as in to equip
to make competent (as by training, skill, or ability) for a particular office or function he's so experienced that they usually use him to train new recruits

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Synonym Chooser

How is the word train different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of train are discipline, educate, instruct, school, and teach. While all these words mean "to cause to acquire knowledge or skill," train stresses instruction and drill with a specific end in view.

trained foreign pilots to operate the new aircraft

When is discipline a more appropriate choice than train?

While the synonyms discipline and train are close in meaning, discipline implies training in habits of order and precision.

a disciplined mind

When could educate be used to replace train?

In some situations, the words educate and train are roughly equivalent. However, educate implies development of the mind.

more things than formal schooling serve to educate a person

When is it sensible to use instruct instead of train?

The synonyms instruct and train are sometimes interchangeable, but instruct suggests methodical or formal teaching.

instructs raw recruits in military drill

Where would school be a reasonable alternative to train?

While in some cases nearly identical to train, school implies training or disciplining especially in what is hard to master.

schooled the horse in five gaits

When might teach be a better fit than train?

Although the words teach and train have much in common, teach applies to any manner of imparting information or skill so that others may learn.

taught us a lot about our planet

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of train
Noun
National Guard troops watched over some of the world’s most renowned landmarks and Humvees took position in front of the busy main train station. Nino Paoli, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2025 There’s a sequence on a packed 4 train the day of a Yankees–Red Sox game with some 25th Hour energy and a ridiculous Sergio Leone–style stand-off on a subway platform. Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 15 Aug. 2025
Verb
The team trained at a local rec center, outside of which two trailers functioned as the team’s facilities. Braidon Nourse, Denver Post, 16 Aug. 2025 This left the Loons with only 16 first-team, out-field players to train at the National Sports Center in Blaine on Friday, setting up another match without a full bench this weekend. Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 16 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for train
Recent Examples of Synonyms for train
Noun
  • Advertisement Advertisement All this is new: the adulation, the notoriety, the xenophobic death threats that have prompted an entourage of men with spaghetti earpieces.
    Mark Chiusano, Time, 14 Aug. 2025
  • But any loose association of two or more people is enough, like Combs’ entourage, Rahami said.
    Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2025
Noun
  • Nearly 5 million EVs are already on American roads, a figure that represents 2% of the total passenger vehicle fleet.
    Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2025
  • Founded by Andrew Petersen in 1914 when West Hartford was largely farmland, the business at one time maintained a fleet of more than 40 milk delivery trucks and manufactured its own ice cream on the second floor of the restaurant building.
    Don Stacom, Hartford Courant, 14 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • In due time, the queue will give way to manufacturing and matching.
    Amir Husain, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
  • Guests prone to motion sickness may want to avoid this ride, but fans should still walk through the queue filled with familiar scenes from the books and films, like Professor Dumbledore’s office, walls of talking portraits, the Sorting Hat and the Mirror of Erised.
    Eve Chen, USA Today, 31 July 2025
Noun
  • After season one’s dance sequence became a sensation, did everybody feel a lot more pressure on the second one?
    Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 22 Aug. 2025
  • The payoff is a drolly whirligig centerpiece sequence in which their small apartment is suddenly swarming with Ashley’s boyfriends.
    Justin Chang, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • State officials advised residents to prepare for the possibility of dangerous conditions along beaches and coastal communities.
    Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 22 Aug. 2025
  • Flush with new money on top of its 2025 budget of $10 billion, ICE is preparing to spend to address each of those chokepoints.
    Albert Sun, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • In 1978, Least Heat-Moon lost his job teaching English.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Aug. 2025
  • The stakes of the Smithsonian review are high, involving how history is preserved and taught and by whom.
    Michael T. Nietzel, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • But while much implantation research focuses on the biochemical aspects of this complex and mysterious natural phenomenon, the IBEC team chose instead to examine the biomechanics.
    Leslie Katz, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2025
  • Byrne’s style is minimalist, while Lee is a maximalist, but the filmmaker knows how best to serve this material, focusing on the stage so that the audience can savor Byrne’s fabulous band and their precise, whimsical choreography.
    Tim Grierson, Vulture, 16 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Like other federal agencies, its spending has been on the chopping block as Trump aims to drastically scale back the size of the federal government.
    Kinsey Crowley, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2025
  • The program aims to provide internet coverage to rural and lower-income households.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 25 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Train.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/train. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.

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