fast-track
/ˈfɑːst træk/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfæst træk/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfɑːst.træk/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfæst.træk/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfas(t)-ˌtrak/ (ame, mw)
fast-track — noun
1. a route that lets someone reach a senior job or another important goal more quic
a route that lets someone reach a senior job or another important goal more quickly than the usual steps would allow, often through a special programme or set of rules.
Élise joined the bank's fast-track for new graduates and became a manager in three years.
noun pattern: the fast-track for [group]
The retailer placed its best trainees on the fast-track to store management.
collocation: place X on the fast-track
Ife saw teaching abroad as her fast-track to a director role back home.
The airline created a fast-track for pilots with military flying experience.
Mayumi turned down the fast-track because she wanted more years of hands-on engineering work first.
- express route
more literal; used of physical journeys as well as careers
- shortcut
informal and broader — any quicker way, official or not
- accelerated programme
formal; specifically a structured course or scheme
- slow track
the ordinary, longer route through the same system
文法句型
on the fast-track
the fast-track to + noun
用法筆記
Usually refers to a special route inside a company, school, or other institution, especially one leading to promotion or another valued goal. Almost always preceded by 'the'.
常見錯誤
fast-track — adjective
1. describing a programme, application, or process that has been arranged to move m
describing a programme, application, or process that has been arranged to move more rapidly than the standard one — used before a noun, not after 'be'.
Christopher applied for a fast-track visa to start his new job in Berlin.
attributive: fast-track + noun (visa)
The hospital opened a fast-track clinic for patients with minor injuries.
collocation: fast-track clinic / scheme / programme
Eri's law firm offers a fast-track partnership route to junior lawyers who win big cases.
The council promised fast-track approval for housing projects in the flood-damaged area.
- expedited
more formal; common in legal and medical writing
- accelerated
broader; works in education and careers as well as approvals
文法句型
fast-track + noun (programme, scheme, application, approval)
用法筆記
Attributive only — sits before the noun it modifies. Cannot be used after 'be': we say 'a fast-track scheme', not 'the scheme is fast-track'.
常見錯誤
fast-track — verb
- fast-trackpresent simple I / you / we / they
- fast-tracks3rd person singular
- fast-tracking-ing form
- fast-trackedpast simple
1. to move a project, a request, or a person through a system more rapidly than usu
to move a project, a request, or a person through a system more rapidly than usual, by skipping or shortening some of the normal steps — often done because the matter is urgent or the person is unusually talented.
The factory fast-tracked the new battery design after rivals released a similar product.
transitive: fast-track + project noun
Reuben was fast-tracked through the training programme and given his own team within a year.
passive: be fast-tracked through + [system]
Parliament agreed to fast-track the bill so it could pass before the summer break.
Talia asked the hospital to fast-track her father's surgery because his condition was getting worse.
Three asylum applications from the camp were fast-tracked after journalists raised the case.
- expedite
formal; usually limited to applications, requests, or shipments
- accelerate
broader; covers physical speed as well as processes
- speed up
informal everyday equivalent
文法句型
fast-track + noun (project, application, person)
be fast-tracked + through + [system]
用法筆記
Frequently passive, especially when a person is the object — 'be fast-tracked' marks the system, not the person, as the agent. Object is usually something an institution controls (a bill, an application, a candidate, a product).