Definition
重操旧业 is a fixed four-character phrase meaning 'to resume one's former occupation'. It's used when someone returns to a job or trade they had before — often after a period of doing something else. Because it's a verb-object phrase (离合词), it can be split in certain contexts, e.g. 又重操起了旧业 ('took up the old trade again'), though the unsplit form is more common.
v.o.
to resume one's former occupationto go back to one's old trade
Examples
- ，重操旧业，。Tuìxiū hòu, tā yòu chóng cāo jiù yè, kāi le yì jiā xiǎo fànguǎn.After retirement, he resumed his former occupation by opening a small restaurant.
- ，重操旧业，。Tā fàngqì dāng lǎoshī hòu, chóngxīn chóng cāo jiù yè, zuò huí le mùjiàng.After giving up being a teacher, he went back to his old trade and returned to carpentry.
- ，重操旧业。Suīrán líkāi hángyè duō nián, tā háishì juédìng chóng cāo jiù yè.Although she had been away from the industry for many years, she still decided to resume her former occupation.
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