Meaning & use
upskilling
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountablebusiness
The process of teaching workers new skills, or of learning new skills yourself, so they can do their jobs better or take on more advanced work.
Grammar: Used without an or a plural: upskilling is expensive, not an upskilling.
Patterns
- upskilling of someone
- invest in upskilling
- upskilling for something
The company launched an upskilling program to prepare its staff for new software.
Government funding for upskilling helped older workers stay employed.
Many nurses see online upskilling as a route to promotion.
verbtransitive or intransitivebusiness
The -ing form of upskill, meaning to teach someone new skills or to learn new skills yourself.
Grammar: Takes an object when you train others: upskilling staff; no object when you train yourself: she is upskilling.
Patterns
- upskilling someone
- upskilling in something
The firm is upskilling its drivers to operate electric vehicles.
She spent the winter upskilling in data analysis.
Word forms
| base form | upskill |
|---|---|
| third person singular | upskills |
| past tense | upskilled |
| -ing form | upskilling |
Common combinations
- workforce upskilling
- Workforce upskilling is a priority for the manufacturing industry.
- invest in upskilling
- Employers that invest in upskilling tend to keep their staff longer.
- upskilling and reskilling
- The report calls for large-scale upskilling and reskilling programs.
- digital upskilling
- Digital upskilling helps small shops sell online.
- upskilling opportunities
- The firm offers upskilling opportunities to every employee.
Synonyms and how they differ
- retraining
- Retraining usually means learning skills for a different job, while upskilling means adding to what you already do.
- professional development
- Professional development is a broader and more formal phrase that includes conferences and mentoring, whereas upskilling stresses acquiring specific new skills.
- training
- Training is the general word and can cover a first-time basic course, while upskilling implies you already have skills and are building on them.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: upskilling or reskilling?
upskilling vs reskilling
Reskilling means learning skills for a new kind of job, while upskilling means improving skills for the work you already do.
Practice
The airline is spending millions on ___ so that its ground crew can handle the new aircraft.
Choose one answer.
Upskilling means giving workers extra skills for more advanced work. Downsizing and outsourcing reduce or move jobs, and rebranding changes a company's image.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “upskilling”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.