Drill
Drill noun - Something done over and over in order to develop skill.
Usage example: doing vocabulary drills all afternoon in preparation for the test
Exercise is a synonym for drill in train topic. In some cases you can use "Exercise" instead the word "Drill" as a noun or a verb, when it comes to topics like training, work, event, instruct. popular alternative
Exercise
Exercise noun - Something done over and over in order to develop skill.
Usage example: a young piano student dutifully going through the standard finger exercises
Drill is a synonym for exercise in work topic. You can use "Drill" instead the word "Exercise" as a noun or a verb, if it concerns topics such as train, event, training, instruct. popular alternative
Mutual synonyms
How words are described
| long | long drill | long exercise |
| normal | normal drill | normal exercise |
| common | common drill | common exercise |
| proper | proper drill | proper exercise |
| Other adjectives: simple, actual, real, massive, big, huge, little, excellent, giant, unannounced. | ||
Common collocations
Both words in one sentence
- Ghost in the Shell does this properly, when a chopper pilot dies during a training exercise, the dispatcher announces "This is not a drill" before giving the order to withdraw.
Source: This Is Not a Drill -
The two of them have a miserable time in basic training, but eventually their drill sergeant (Oates) gets injured in a training exercise and they have to finish the training on their own.
Source: Film / Stripes - While the first mate is helping to put the fire out, the Captain orders a launch drill, although the actual wording of the announcement given by both the Captain and the XO is "This is an exercise."
Source: This Is Not a Drill
Cite this Source
Exercise and Drill. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/drill/exercise
Drill & Exercise. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/drill/exercise>.
Exercise or Drill. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/drill/exercise.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "drill" and "exercise" have occurred on timeline