Rear vs. Train — What's the Difference?
By Maham Liaqat & Urooj Arif — Updated on May 21, 2024
Rear refers to the back part of something, often used to describe the backside of a vehicle or position. Train denotes a series of connected vehicles traveling on a railway or the act of teaching or instructing someone.
Difference Between Rear and Train
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Key Differences
Rear is commonly used to describe the back part of an object, such as the rear of a car or building. Train, on the other hand, primarily refers to a set of connected railway cars that travel along tracks, but it can also mean to instruct or teach someone a skill or behavior.
When considering their usage in the context of vehicles, the rear typically refers to the back end of a vehicle, like a car or airplane. Whereas, a train is a mode of transportation consisting of multiple connected carriages or wagons moving along rails.
In terms of direction and positioning, rear signifies the backside or end part of an object or area. Train doesn’t convey a specific directional position but rather indicates a method of transit or the action of preparing or teaching.
When used in the context of learning and development, train means to teach or guide someone in acquiring skills or knowledge. Rear is not commonly associated with this context and instead is more often related to physical placement.
In the context of verbs, to rear can mean to raise up or bring up, as in rearing children or animals. Conversely, to train means to instruct or exercise discipline in a particular skill or behavior.
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Comparison Chart
Primary Definition
Back part of something
Connected railway vehicles
Secondary Definition
To raise or bring up
To teach or instruct
Usage in Positioning
Refers to the backside
Does not specify position
Context in Learning
Not applicable
Teaching or skill development
Verb Form
To raise (e.g., children or animals)
To instruct or guide
Compare with Definitions
Rear
The backside or end of something.
The rear of the building has a beautiful garden.
Train
To teach or instruct someone.
She trains new employees on company procedures.
Rear
To stand up on the hind legs (for animals).
The horse reared up when it was startled.
Train
To exercise discipline and skill development.
He trains every day to improve his running speed.
Rear
Located at the back.
The rear entrance is less crowded.
Train
A series of connected items or events.
A train of thoughts interrupted his focus.
Rear
A hind part.
Train
A train is a form of rail transport consisting of a series of connected vehicles that generally run along a railroad (or railway) track to transport passengers or cargo (also known as "freight" or "goods"). The word train comes from the Old French trahiner, derived from the Latin trahere meaning 'to pull, to draw'.Motive power for a train is provided by a separate locomotive or individual motors in a self-propelled multiple unit.
Rear
The point or area farthest from the front
The rear of the hall.
Train
Teach (a person or animal) a particular skill or type of behaviour through sustained practice and instruction
The scheme trains people for promotion
The dogs are trained to sniff out illegal stowaways
Rear
The part of a military deployment usually farthest from the fighting front.
Train
Point or aim something, typically a gun or camera, at
The detective trained his gun on the side door
Rear
(Informal) The buttocks.
Train
Go by train
Charles trained to London with Emma
Rear
Of, at, or located in the rear.
Train
Entice (someone).
Rear
To care for (children or a child) during the early stages of life; bring up. See Usage Note at raise.
Train
A series of connected railway carriages or wagons moved by a locomotive or by integral motors
A freight train
The journey took two hours by train
Rear
To tend (growing plants or animals).
Train
A number of vehicles or pack animals moving in a line
A camel train
Rear
To build; erect.
Train
A long piece of material attached to the back of a formal dress or robe that trails along the ground
The bride wore a cream silk dress with a train
Rear
(Archaic) To lift upright; raise.
Train
A trail of gunpowder for firing an explosive charge.
Rear
To rise on the hind legs, as a horse.
Train
A series of connected railroad cars pulled or pushed by one or more locomotives.
Rear
To rise high in the air; tower.
Train
A long line of moving people, animals, or vehicles.
Rear
(transitive) To bring up to maturity, as offspring; to educate; to instruct; to foster.
Train
The personnel, vehicles, and equipment following and providing supplies and services to a combat unit.
Rear
To breed and raise.
The family has been rearing cattle for 200 years.
Train
A part of a gown that trails behind the wearer.
Rear
(intransitive) To rise up on the hind legs
The horse was shocked, and thus reared.
Train
A staff of people following in attendance; a retinue.
Rear
To get angry.
Train
An orderly succession of related events or thoughts; a sequence.
Rear
(intransitive) To rise high above, tower above.
Train
A series of consequences wrought by an event; aftermath.
Rear
To raise physically or metaphorically; to lift up; to cause to rise, to elevate.
The monster slowly reared its head.
Train
A set of linked mechanical parts
A train of gears.
Rear
To construct by building; to set up
To rear defenses or houses
To rear one government on the ruins of another.
Train
A string of gunpowder that acts as a fuse for exploding a charge.
Rear
To raise spiritually; to lift up; to elevate morally.
Train
To coach in or accustom to a mode of behavior or performance.
Rear
To lift and take up.
Train
To make proficient with specialized instruction and practice.
Rear
To rouse; to strip up.
Train
To prepare physically, as with a regimen
Train athletes for track-and-field competition.
Rear
To place in the rear; to secure the rear of.
Train
To cause (a plant or one's hair) to take a desired course or shape, as by manipulating.
Rear
To sodomize perform anal sex
Train
To point or direct (a gun or camera, for example) at something.
Rear
(transitive) To move; stir.
Train
To let drag behind; trail.
Rear
To carve.
Rear that goose!
Train
To give or undergo a course of training
Trained daily for the marathon.
Rear
(regional, obsolete) To revive, bring to life, quicken. (only in the phrase, to rear to life)
Train
To travel by railroad train.
Rear
Being behind, or in the hindmost part; hindmost
The rear rank of a company
Sit in the rear seats of a car
Train
Elongated or trailing portion.
Rear
(of eggs) Underdone; nearly raw.
Train
The elongated back portion of a dress or skirt (or an ornamental piece of material added to similar effect), which drags along the ground.
Unfortunately, the leading bridesmaid stepped on the bride's train as they were walking down the aisle.
Rear
(of meats) Rare.
Train
A trail or line of something, especially gunpowder.
Rear
Early; soon
Train
The tail of a bird.
Rear
The back or hindmost part; that which is behind, or last in order.
Train
(obsolete) The tail of an animal in general.
Rear
(military) Specifically, the part of an army or fleet which comes last, or is stationed behind the rest.
Train
(poetic) The elongated body or form of something narrow and winding, such as the course of a river or the body of a snake.
Rear
(anatomy) The buttocks or bottom.
Train
(astronomy) A transient trail of glowing ions behind a large meteor as it falls through the atmosphere or accompanying a comet as it nears the sun; tail.
Rear
Early; soon.
Then why does Cuddy leave his cot so rear?
Train
An animal's trail or track.
Rear
The back or hindmost part; that which is behind, or last in order; - opposed to front.
Nipped with the lagging rear of winter's frost.
Train
Something dragged or laid along the ground to form a trail of scent or food along which to lure an animal.
Rear
Specifically, the part of an army or fleet which comes last, or is stationed behind the rest.
When the fierce foe hung on our broken rear.
Train
(obsolete) Gait or manner of running of a horse.
Rear
Being behind, or in the hindmost part; hindmost; as, the rear rank of a company.
Train
Connected sequence of people or things.
Rear
To place in the rear; to secure the rear of.
Train
A group of people following an important figure such as a king or noble; a retinue, a group of retainers.
Rear
To raise; to lift up; to cause to rise, become erect, etc.; to elevate; as, to rear a monolith.
In adoration at his feet I fellSubmiss; he reared me.
It reareth our hearts from vain thoughts.
Mine [shall be] the first hand to rear her banner.
Train
A group of animals, vehicles, or people that follow one another in a line, such as a wagon train; a caravan or procession.
Our party formed a train at the funeral parlor before departing for the burial.
Rear
To erect by building; to set up; to construct; as, to rear defenses or houses; to rear one government on the ruins of another.
One reared a font of stone.
Train
A group or class of people.
Rear
To lift and take up.
And having her from Trompart lightly reared,Upon his courser set the lovely load.
Train
(military) The men and vehicles following an army, which carry artillery and other equipment for battle or siege.
Rear
To bring up to maturity, as young; to educate; to instruct; to foster; as, to rear offspring.
He wants a father to protect his youth,And rear him up to virtue.
Train
A sequence of events or ideas which are interconnected; a course or procedure of something.
Rear
To breed and raise; as, to rear cattle.
Train
A set of things, events, or circumstances that follow after or as a consequence; aftermath, wake.
Rear
To rouse; to stir up.
And seeks the tusky boar to rear.
Train
(obsolete) State of progress, status, situation (in phrases introduced by in a + adjective); also proper order or situation (introduced by in or in a alone).
In a fair / better / worse train
Rear
To rise up on the hind legs, as a horse; to become erect.
Train
A set of interconnected mechanical parts which operate each other in sequence.
Rear
The back of a military formation or procession;
Infantrymen were in the rear
Train
A series of electrical pulses.
Rear
The side of an object that is opposite its front;
His room was toward the rear of the hotel
Train
A series of specified vehicles (originally tramcars in a mine as usual, later especially railway carriages) coupled together.
Rear
The part of something that is furthest from the normal viewer;
He stood at the back of the stage
It was hidden in the rear of the store
Train
A mechanical (traditionally steam-powered, now typically diesel or electrical) vehicle carrying a large number of passengers and freight along a designated track or path; a line of connected cars or carriages considered overall as a mode of transport; (as uncountable noun) rail or road travel.
The train will pull in at midday.
Rear
The fleshy part of the human body that you sit on;
He deserves a good kick in the butt
Are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?
Train
A long, heavy sleigh used in Canada for the transportation of merchandise, wood, etc.
Rear
The side that goes last or is not normally seen;
He wrote the date on the back of the photograph
Train
(computing) A software release schedule.
Rear
Stand up on the hind legs, of quadrupeds;
The horse reared in terror
Train
An act wherein series of men line up and then penetrate a person, especially as a form of gang rape.
Rear
Bring up;
Raise a family
Bring up children
Train
Treachery; deceit.
Rear
Rise up;
The building rose before them
Train
A trick or stratagem.
Rear
Cause to rise up
Train
A trap for animals, a snare; (figuratively) a trap in general.
Rear
Construct, build, or erect;
Raise a barn
Train
A lure; a decoy.
Rear
Located in or toward the back or rear;
The chair's rear legs
The rear door of the plane
On the rearward side
Train
A live bird, handicapped or disabled in some way, provided for a young hawk to kill as training or enticement.
Rear
Back part of an object.
The rear of the car was damaged in the accident.
Train
(obsolete) train oil, whale oil.
Rear
To raise or bring up children or animals.
They decided to rear their children in the countryside.
Train
(intransitive) To practice an ability.
She trained seven hours a day to prepare for the Olympics.
Train
(transitive) To teach and form (someone) by practice; to educate (someone).
You can't train a pig to write poetry.
Train
(intransitive) To improve one's fitness.
I trained with weights all winter.
Train
(intransitive) To proceed in sequence.
Train
(transitive) To move (a gun) laterally so that it points in a different direction.
The assassin had trained his gun on the minister.
Train
To encourage (a plant or branch) to grow in a particular direction or shape, usually by pruning and bending.
The vine had been trained over the pergola.
Train
To trace (a lode or any mineral appearance) to its head.
Train
To create a trainer for; to apply cheats to (a game).
Train
To draw (something) along; to trail, to drag (something).
Train
To trail down or along the ground.
Train
To draw by persuasion, artifice, or the like; to attract by stratagem; to entice; to allure.
Train
To draw along; to trail; to drag.
In hollow cubeTraining his devilish enginery.
Train
To draw by persuasion, artifice, or the like; to attract by stratagem; to entice; to allure.
If but a dozen FrenchWere there in arms, they would be as a callTo train ten thousand English to their side.
O, train me not, sweet mermaid, with thy note.
This feast, I'll gage my life,Is but a plot to train you to your ruin.
Train
To teach and form by practice; to educate; to exercise; to discipline; as, to train the militia to the manual exercise; to train soldiers to the use of arms.
Our trained bands, which are the trustiest and most proper strength of a free nation.
The warrior horse here bred he's taught to train.
Train
To break, tame, and accustom to draw, as oxen.
Train
To lead or direct, and form to a wall or espalier; to form to a proper shape, by bending, lopping, or pruning; as, to train young trees.
He trained the young branches to the right hand or to the left.
Train
To trace, as a lode or any mineral appearance, to its head.
Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
The first Christians were, by great hardships, trained up for glory.
Train
To be drilled in military exercises; to do duty in a military company.
Train
To prepare by exercise, diet, instruction, etc., for any physical contest; as, to train for a boat race.
Train
That which draws along; especially, persuasion, artifice, or enticement; allurement.
Train
Hence, something tied to a lure to entice a hawk; also, a trap for an animal; a snare.
With cunning trains him to entrap un wares.
Train
That which is drawn along in the rear of, or after, something; that which is in the hinder part or rear.
Train
That part of a gown which trails behind the wearer.
Train
A number of followers; a body of attendants; a retinue; a suite.
The king's daughter with a lovely train.
My train are men of choice and rarest parts.
Train
The after part of a gun carriage; the trail.
Train
A consecution or succession of connected things; a series.
The train of ills our love would draw behind it.
Rivers nowStream and perpetual draw their humid train.
Other truths require a train of ideas placed in order.
Train
The tail of a bird.
Train
Regular method; process; course; order; as, things now in a train for settlement.
If things were once in this train, . . . our duty would take root in our nature.
Train
The number of beats of a watch in any certain time.
Train
A line of gunpowder laid to lead fire to a charge, mine, or the like.
Train
A connected line of cars or carriages on a railroad; - called also railroad train.
Train
A heavy, long sleigh used in Canada for the transportation of merchandise, wood, and the like.
Train
A roll train; as, a 12-inch train.
Train
The aggregation of men, animals, and vehicles which accompany an army or one of its subdivisions, and transport its baggage, ammunition, supplies, and reserve materials of all kinds.
Train
Public transport provided by a line of railway cars coupled together and drawn by a locomotive;
Express trains don't stop at Princeton Junction
Train
A sequentially ordered set of things or events or ideas in which each successive member is related to the preceding;
A string of islands
Train of mourners
A train of thought
Train
A procession (of wagons or mules or camels) traveling together in single file;
We were part of a caravan of almost a thousand camels
They joined the wagon train for safety
Train
A series of consequences wrought by an event;
It led to a train of disasters
Train
Piece of cloth forming the long back section of a gown that is drawn along the floor;
The bride's train was carried by her two young nephews
Train
Wheelwork consisting of a connected set of rotating gears by which force is transmitted or motion or torque is changed;
The fool got his tie caught in the geartrain
Train
Create by training and teaching;
The old master is training world-class violinists
We develop the leaders for the future
Train
Undergo training or instruction in preparation for a particular role, function, or profession;
She is training to be a teacher
He trained as a legal aid
Train
Train by instruction and practice; especially to teach self-control;
Parents must discipline their children
Is this dog trained?
Train
Prepare (someone) for a future role or function;
He is grooming his son to become his successor
The prince was prepared to become King one day
They trained him to be a warrior
Train
Train to be discriminative in taste or judgment;
Cultivate your musical taste
Train your tastebuds
She is well schooled in poetry
Train
Aim or direct at; as of blows, weapons, or objects such as photographic equipment;
Please don't aim at your little brother!
He trained his gun on the burglar
Don't train your camera on the women
Take a swipe at one's opponent
Train
Teach and supervise (someone); act as a trainer or coach (to), as in sports;
He is training our Olympic team
She is coaching the crew
Train
Exercise in order to prepare for an event or competition;
She is training for the Olympics
Train
Train to grow in a certain way by tying and pruning it;
Train the vine
Train
Travel by rail or train;
They railed from Rome to Venice
She trained to Hamburg
Train
Drag loosely along a surface; allow to sweep the ground;
The toddler was trailing his pants
She trained her long scarf behind her
Train
Connected railway vehicles.
The train arrived at the station on time.
Train
To aim or direct.
He trained his binoculars on the distant bird.
Common Curiosities
Can 'rear' be used as a verb?
Yes, 'rear' can mean to raise or bring up children or animals.
How is 'train' used in transportation?
Train refers to a series of connected railway cars traveling on tracks.
What does 'train' mean in an educational context?
Train means to teach or instruct someone.
What does 'rear' mean in a vehicle context?
Rear refers to the back part of a vehicle.
Does 'rear' have a specific directional meaning?
Yes, it signifies the backside or end part of something.
Can 'train' be used as a noun and a verb?
Yes, it can refer to railway vehicles (noun) or the act of teaching (verb).
Is 'rear' commonly used in learning contexts?
No, 'rear' is not typically used in learning or educational contexts.
What is another meaning of 'rear' besides back part?
Rear can also mean to stand up on hind legs, as animals do.
Is 'train' used in fitness contexts?
Yes, it refers to exercising or developing physical skills.
What are other meanings of 'train' besides railway vehicles?
Train also means to teach, instruct, or develop skills.
How can 'train' be used metaphorically?
Train can describe a series of thoughts or events (e.g., a train of thought).
Can 'train' refer to focusing on something?
Yes, it can mean aiming or directing attention (e.g., training binoculars on a bird).
Can 'rear' describe a position in a building?
Yes, it can refer to the back end or part of a building.
What does 'rear' mean in terms of animal behavior?
It can mean an animal standing up on its hind legs.
What does 'rear entrance' imply?
It indicates the back entrance of a building or place.
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Written by
Maham Liaqat
Co-written by
Urooj ArifUrooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
