0
Gene93 Posted 11 years ago
Vocabulary

A vacant position/job

Hello,
Is it idiomatic to say that a position or a particular job is vacant (someone is needed to do it)? Here's an example: " The position has been vacant for several months now. Can we use free or available as synonyms for vacant. I don't hear it used very often. Does vacant sound natural in this sentence, though?
Thank you in advance Emotion: smile
  

Top answer

Gene93 The position has been vacant for several months now. Good sentence! Gene93 Can we use free or available as synonyms for vacant.

— Mister Micawber

  • Gene93 The position has been vacant for several months now.
  • Good sentence!
  • Gene93 Can we use free or available as synonyms for vacant.
  • Not really.
  • Gene93 Does vacant sound natural in this sentence, though?
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

9 Answers
0
Gene93The position has been vacant for several months now.
Good sentence!
Gene93Can we use free or available as synonyms for vacant.
Not really.
Gene93Does vacant sound natural in this sentence, though?
Yes, indeed.
0
0
It's correct to say that a position is vacant. It's incorrect to say that a job is vacant.

You could also say that a position or a job is available.
0
0
Thank you both. A job can be available, whereas positions are usually vacant or available. When using "position" in a sentence we can use either vacant or available. Is that correct?

P.S. I came across "a vacant job" on Macmillan Dictionary and Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary. That made me think it was okay.

Thank you again
0
0
Gene93When using "position" in a sentence we can use either vacant or available.
Yes, that's more or less what I meant.
0
0
Gene93I came across "a vacant job" on Macmillan Dictionary and Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
Interesting. Perhaps it is correct after all, but in my part of the world (eastern USA) you'd rarely see it in common use, so I personally would avoid it.

I will say the phrase is certainly understandable in either case. Then it's just a matt
0
0
I think it very much depends on where they come from. We can't satisfy everyone now, can we?

Thank you for everything Emotion: smile
0
0
Mister Micawber Gene93Can we use free or available as synonyms for vacant.Not really.
Just genuinely curious,
what do you mean by "not really"?
Not really how?
When exactly are the suggested substitute words usable and when are they not?
0
0
maelstromwhat do you mean by "not really"?
I mean that they are understandable but not native choices.
0

Related Questions