oc ‧ cu ‧ pa ‧ tion S3 W3 AC /ˌɒkjəˈpeɪʃ ə n, ˌɒkjʊˈpeɪʃ ə n $ ˌɑːk-/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ occupation , ↑ occupant , ↑ occupancy ; verb : ↑ occupy ; adjective : ↑ occupied ]
1 . [countable] a job or profession:
Please state your name, address and occupation.
professional and managerial occupations
manual occupations
2 . [uncountable] when a large group of people enter a place and take control of it, especially by military force
occupation of
the German occupation of France
under occupation
The area is under occupation (=controlled by a foreign army) .
3 . [countable] a way of spending your time SYN pastime :
One of my childhood occupations was collecting stamps.
4 . [uncountable] when someone lives or stays in a building or place:
When the first scientists came to the region they found little evidence of human occupation.
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COLLOCATIONS
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + occupation
▪ manual occupations/blue-collar occupations (=jobs in which you work using your hands)
People from manual occupations are most at risk of experiencing poverty.
▪ professional occupations/white-collar occupations (=jobs that usually involve a lot of education)
professional occupations such as medicine or the law
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Teachers’ pay compares poorly with that of other white-collar occupations.
▪ skilled/unskilled occupations (=needing training and experience/not needing training and experience)
Plumbing and carpentry are highly skilled occupations.
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Workers in unskilled occupations are finding fewer job opportunities.
▪ a working-class/middle-class occupation
Teaching is regarded as a middle-class occupation.
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Working-class occupations may be divided into skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled.
▪ a male/female occupation (=a job that traditionally is done by men or women)
traditional female occupations such as nursing
▪ managerial occupations (=a job that involves being a manager)
Women in managerial occupations tend to have children later.
▪ service occupations (=a job in which you provide a service rather than producing goods)
Around two thirds of the labour force is employed in service occupations.
■ verbs
▪ have an occupation
The people in the region have a variety of occupations.
▪ choose an occupation
Young people need help with choosing a suitable occupation.
▪ take up an occupation ( also enter an occupation formal ) (=start doing one)
Many of his colleagues have taken up another occupation.
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Our recent graduates have entered a wide range of occupations.
▪ follow an occupation formal (=do one)
The third son followed his father’s occupation.
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THESAURUS
▪ job noun [countable] the regular paid work that you do for an employer:
a full-time job
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John got a job in a car factory.
▪ work noun [uncountable] activities that you are paid for doing – used either when you work for an employer or when you work in your own business:
I started work when I was 18.
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He graduated from college last year and is still looking for work.
▪ profession noun [countable] a job for which you need special education and training:
There are now a lot more women in the legal profession.
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Many teachers are leaving the profession.
▪ occupation noun [countable] formal a job, or a type of job – often used on official documents:
Please give your name, age, and occupation.
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a traditionally male occupation
▪ career noun [countable] the work you do or plan to do for most of your life:
I’m interested in a career in journalism.
▪ position noun [countable] formal a particular job within an organization:
I am writing to apply for the position of technical assistant.
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We regret that the position has already been filled.
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Please state the position which you are applying for.
▪ post noun [countable] formal a job, especially an important one in a large organization:
She has held the post of managing director for two years.
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He applied for the post of Senior Manager.
▪ vacancy/opening noun [countable] a job that is available for someone to do:
The hospital has been unable to fill the vacancy.
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There are very few openings in scientific research.
▪ appointment noun [countable] an important job which someone is asked to do:
He took an appointment as US trade ambassador in Geneva.
▪ posting noun [countable] a situation in which someone is sent somewhere to do a job for a period of time by the organization they work for:
This was his first posting outside the UK.
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an overseas posting
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His next posting took him to the Ministry of Defence.
▪ trade noun [countable] a job that involves using your hands, and for which you need special training:
Most of the men had worked in skilled trades such as carpentry and printing.
▪ employment noun [uncountable] the fact of having a job:
The factory will provide employment for local people.
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She was offered employment in the sales office.